Blazblue: Canon Distortion
by SpeedRulerLiberation
Summary: Makoto Nanaya is living in a world that has completely changed. Different from what she was used to back in the Academy, she struggles to cope with her new found life. As if that's bad enough, Memories she has never experienced before has begun to surface. Just what is going to happen to her and where will this take her? Teen for now as ratings may change later.
1. Canon Prologue

( A new story has begun... I hope you all are ready for the ride that is to come so let's begin!)

Canon Prologue

Deep in the city streets lies a simple bar. This bar is not your ordinary bar however as much as the city is not your ordinary city. This bar has an illegal fighting ring that where many high intensity bets are made with lives often put on the line. Now you may be wondering... how can this bar even have such a location in the first place? Why all you have to do is just be a part of the 1st Free State of Otsu, a former part of the hierarchical city system which managed to gain freedom from the NOL at the expense of being one of the smallest in the world.

How one state could gain it's freedom let alone from the greatest government the world has ever seen will be saved for another time. That is not important right now. What is important... is that in this very bar, where an illegal fighting ring is held... we just into the middle of one of these fights, as a woman slams into the pure steel post of the ring she was standing on, her tail absorbing the impact she felt as with grace she pushed herself off the post as she stared down against her much larger foe.

This woman had a light chestnut brown short hair with twin ahoge sticking out as at the end of her hair had small blond highlights. The tail in question is a rather bushy brown tail that has a couple of noticeable black and white lines flowing through them as her large boobs struggled to not jiggle out of the sports Bra she had to wear due to being in a fight club as her fists were bound tightly with tape that was covered in the blood of the guy she was beating up as she couldn't help but let out a small smirk.

"**Come on tough guy, that all you got for just the first round?**" The woman taunted as she waved her fists towards the man, allowing the cut that had formed at the right side of her eye to bleed a little as the man she taunted charges right for her attempting to decapitate her head off. The Woman merely bobs and weaves as she used the motion she gained to quickly dash up towards the man and land two solid blows to his liver and spine, causing the giant man to keel over as his chin was exposed and ripe for the taking.

"**LIGHTS OUT SUCKER!**" The woman screamed as her fist wound up and she delivered a devastating uppercut right onto the jaw of the behemoth, sending him flying away from the ring into the crowd where they stepped away just in time as the floorboards gave away and simply allowed him to crash right down to the basement as the crowd roared into cheers at the results of the match. "**AND WITH THAT! WE HAVE OUR WINNER FOLKS! GIVE IT UP TO THE SMALL PACKAGE HERSELF! MAKOTO NANAYA!**" The announcer screamed as Makoto simply licked her lips in satisfaction and raised her fists triumphantly.

As she did so, the crowd both cheered and booed for her as they showered her with all sorts of assorted trash. Makoto couldn't help but play up the crowd a little as she raised her fists into the air and did a small jog around the ring, swaying her tail in the process and purposely allowing little slivers of her ass to show, causing the cheering and booing to intensify. As she made her way down to the lockers and away from the chaos happening in the ring, Makoto couldn't help but think about what has happened to her.

* * *

It had been two years since she signed up with the NOL. Since that fateful day where she got an early promotion into the NOL thanks to a certain event, she was able to get into her dream job of being a part of intelligence and was exploring the world like she had never before. However before she even got to be a part of intelligence, she had to prove her worth in the Ikaruga war, participating in the normal infantry and fighting against Ikarugans, spilling a fair share of blood in the process.

Since that time, the Ikaruga war was done and dusted, with the Ikarugan federation officially being disbanded with the death of the great lord Tenjo and all of the Hierarchical cities under the Ikarguan federation now being placed under NOL rule. Otsu is the exception to that rule because they managed to apply for freedom to rule on their own at a moment where Public support for the NOL was at an all time low and thus why Otsu is called the 1st free state instead of being a part of the 9th or 10th hierarchical cities of Akitsu.

However it was not to say that the Ikaruga war was all smooth sailing for the NOL. During the war, Makoto lost a lot of people, people she considered close friends of hers. People she never got to see during the war and the last time she did was when she went for their funerals that the NOL provides for all soldiers. Her current surviving friends are either throwing themselves into their current lives and keeping themselves busy in the process or have just gone dark in general.

One of those friends was Noel Vermillion. A close friend of hers and a part of one of the families that was formerly supported by the NOL. She had been assigned to work under Major Jin Kisaragi, the adopted son of the Kisaragi household and has become busy since being his assistant. Another friend, Tsubaki Yayoi, has been climbing up the ranks in the NOL having gotten herself promoted to Lieutenant recently in the main division of the NOL and doesn't even show signs of slowing down, with some saying she may become a Major if she kept up with her current pace.

And what about Makoto? Well like she wanted, she got to join the Intelligence department like she had always dreamed but there was some things she did not like about it. The main thing being her captain who she cannot help but hate... maybe because of his green hair or his bright yellow eyes that simply reminds her of a snake. There is also not to mention the fact that he would often not pay her in time, often forcing to fight as she is currently doing so right now in Otsu as she was in the middle of changing when the door opened and she saw the Announcer of the match standing in front of it.

* * *

"**Once again Miss Nanaya, you are making me a lot of money right now. Here's your cut of the cash as we promised.**" The promoter said to her, handing her a cool stack of cash that she takes to carefully count. "**Oh come on now, you know I won't cut my best fighter now.**" he said as Makoto sighed hearing that. "**But I know that you're a two time bitch who has often not paid in full... but it looks like this time you did. So good for you.**" Makoto said as she quickly pockets her cash and begins to change into a simple pair of clothes and undoing the tape around her bloody fists, exposing the dried up blood which had managed to soak their way through the tape in the process.

"**You know... I do have another set of fights lined up for you if you are interested.**" The Announcer asked as Makoto simply shook her head. "**I've seen the fighters you bring in, None of them interest me in any way.**" Makoto replied as the Announcer got closer. "**Then what about other services then, I am pretty sure that there are some men who...**" before he could even finish his sentence, Makoto quickly turns around and clocks him right in the face with enough force to send him crashing into the lockers.

"**Not interested buddy. I'm leaving.**" Makoto simply replied as she finished putting on the a black jacket that was rather worn out to cover her body from the frigid cold that Otsu was experiencing due to a recent malfunction in the weather system caused by the most wanted criminal in the world. She would have worn more but she was trying to save enough money to send to her folks at the end of the month and with the cut she earned, she had just enough to live on her own for a while.

As she left the bar and quickly deposited her cash at the closest ATM she could find. She pulls out a flask and opens it before pointing it's cap to the ground. "**Damn... empty already huh...**" Makoto mumbled as she looked around for a bit before noticing a nearby liquor store. As much as she would have liked to go back into the bar for a quick refill, it's best she didn't see the creep of an announcer who tried to make her do some other illegal stuff that was legal in Otsu.

As soon as she took a step into the liquor store, hearing the store bell ring above her head, she felt a couple of bodies quickly push up against her to slip by as she looked around quickly only to see nothing. "**Why hello there Ma'am, what can I do for a fine lady such as yourself?**" The clerk asked he pressed his body on the register, as Makoto walked up to him with her empty flask in hand. "**Fill this up with the cheapest gin you got... and give me a couple bottles of cheap whiskey and Vokda while you're at it.**" Makoto replied as the clerk simply gave her a smile and did as she asked, placing two full bottles of the cheapest stuff he had.

Turning his back on Makoto to fill her flask full of Gin as she had asked, Makoto turned around and noticed a couple of small children, roughly around the age of 10 trying to shoplift a couple cartons of beer for themselves when they noticed the orange eyed squirrel looking at their direction. If this was any normal Hierarchical city, Makoto would have stopped them. In Otsu however, things were different as she simply gestured for the kids to get going. Prompting them to do so as the store bell rung while they made a break for it.

"**Ah fuck... did the store just get robbed?**" The cashier said as Makoto simply nods her head. The man only sighs as he reaches underneath the register and pulls out a shotgun as he storms out of the store. "**HEY YOU LITTLE SHITHEADS! COME BACK HERE WITH TH****AT BEER****!**" the man yelled as he chased after them as Makoto looked around for a little bit before simply reaching into the unmanned register and smashes the cash register, taking a couple of blaybloo for herself as she took a bag containing her alcohols and flask full of gin with her.

Soon after making the slow walk towards the checkpoint to get back into the 9th hierarchical city of Akitsu-Ko, Makoto's phone begins to vibrate as she sighs when she sees the name of the caller as she picks it up after taking a deep breath. "**Lieutenant Makoto Nanaya speaking, What's the matter this time ****Captain****?**" Makoto said in a cheery voice as her superior on the line simply sighed. "Y**ou know this is the fifth time I have tried to call you. Were you busy my dear?**" her superior asked.

* * *

Makoto: **Why of course, it's going to be new years tomorrow and I just thought I would head back home early for the night so I can spend some time with family.**

Superior:** Yeah... change of plans lieutenant. I need you to head to the 6****th**** Hierarchical city of Ibukido for me**

Makoto: **Ibukido? What do you want me to do in Ibukido of all places?**

Superior: **There has been reports of Ikarugan activity in the area. As much as I would like to hand wave this off, we cannot take any risks, especially on the day of new years.**

Makoto: **Can't you send in someone else in my place? I am kind of busy.**

Superior: **I'm afraid I cannot. I need your particular set of skills for this job. Besides, I cannot go there myself. I am ****busy myself and**** simply not fit for fighting in the first place.**

* * *

Makoto took a deep breath when she heard those words as she scratched her head. "**If that's the case, I'll make sure to get ready and head off first thing in the morning ****Captain****.**" Makoto said as she was about to hang up the phone at that exact moment before she heard a loud sigh on the phone, making her rub on her head a little. "**I mean ****Captain**** Hazama.**" Makoto said as she couldn't help but wince saying that as Hazama cheered at that,

"**Now that's the hard worker I know! I promise that you will get a big bonus for doing this for me I promise!**" Hazama said before hanging up on her as she took a quick gulp of her gin to cool down. Talking to her major, Hazama in general simply infuriated her as she didn't want to have a thing to do with the man as she decided to take a small break and sit down on a bench as she stared out onto the night sky, placing her feet on the railing as she drank from her flask again.

"**This sucks...**" Makoto moaned as she laid her head on the bench to close her eyes for a bit. Here she was, getting forced to work on her one day to catch a break and try to hang out with close friends if they did not have anything to do at that moment as she couldn't help but look at her phone again to the groups page she made for her two closest friends, Tsubaki Yayoi and Noel Vermillion as she stared at the post she had recently made to the two, asking if they were busy and the both of them simply replying no.

"**Can't meet up this year, I got assigned to work in Kagutsuchi for a while... not sure when I will be able to meet up**." Noel replied as Makoto scrolled down to see what Tsubaki had to say. "**I am busy too, NOL paper work is piling up so I am pulling over time to finish it in time.**" Tsubaki replied as Makoto sighed and took a deep breath. "**It's okay guys. It's just for one year. Let's try to meet up when our schedules are free.**" Makoto typed before pocketing her phone and sighing at her luck.

Drinking another sip of gin, she soon decided that it was best she made her way to her temporary apartment in Akitsu-Ko where she soon rested her head on a bed and took a couple of deep breaths while drinking another sip of gin. At this point, all she wants to do is simply drink herself to sleep as she couldn't help but feel like her life was slipping. As much as she was earning money for the family and living her dream... she cannot help but feel that she was missing something in the process.

Could it be the friendships that she had established in the Academy? Her closest bonds with the group of people she had managed to befriend and keep in contact with? Or maybe it's just the fact that she couldn't help but feel like she's drifting apart from that same group and they were becoming strangers? Regardless of what she was thinking, she wanted to stop thinking as it got too painful for her... too sad for her to do so as she decided to simply close her eyes at that moment and fall into a deep sleep...

* * *

**A sleep that would grant her no peace of mind whatsoever...**

* * *

Makoto felt a couple of pats on her shoulder before a firm nudging. That was telling her somebody was trying to wake her up at that she should. "**Come on you sleepy head, wake up already...**" a voice called out for her as Makoto struggled to open her eyes. When her vision finally came to, she couldn't help but smile at the familiar sight of the academy as she sat upright on the chair she was seated on to face the person who woke her up. "**Is class almost starting already?**" Makoto asked the person in question simply pouted.

"**Of course, why would we wake you up then?**" A red haired man asked as Makoto focused her vision closely and realized who it was. "**Oh come on Hunter, don't be so wound up.**" Makoto said as Hunter scratched his head a little before a blonde haired girl and a red haired girl joined Hunter in looking at her. "**Have you been getting enough sleep lately Makoto? You look like you've been busy.**" The blond haired girl asked as the red haired girl sat next to Makoto and patted her in the back.

"**I'm alright Noel. Just a bit tired that's all**" Makoto replied as Noel couldn't help but smile at her. "**What about you guys, you not tired yourselves?**" Makoto asked as The red haired girl nodded her head. "**Don't push yourself too hard, you need to take it easy on yourself.**" The red haired girl said as Makoto simply nodded her head. "**Don't worry Tsubaki. I promise to do so.**" Makoto says to help reassure one of her closest friends as she began to look forward.

"**Say, When does class start again?**" Makoto asked as Noel, Tsubaki and Hunter checked their clocks respectively. "**It's almost time for the first class. We should get back to our seats now.**" Tsubaki said as Makoto simply smiled and nodded her head as her friends proceeded to do so. As they did, Makoto couldn't help but lay her head down again, wanting to close her eyes and get a little bit more sleep before class officially started.

"_**You alright there? You look tired?**_" A voice spoke as Makoto raised her head to face the figure. As she did so, she couldn't help but close her eyes at the presence that was blinding her. She couldn't get a good look at his face, hell he looked like a faceless nobody. '_**Who the hell...who on earth is this guy? What a weirdo...**_' Makoto thought as she raised her voice to try and shoo away the voice. "_**To be honest... I'm a little bit tired. Studying for the finals suck.**_" Makoto said, causing her to suddenly realize that something was wrong.

'_**Wait a minute... that was not what I was thinking about... and why the hell am I speaking Japanese to this guy I don't know?**_' Makoto thought out as she sat back up on her seat a little. "_**Finals huh... to think that we would still need to do them even though we kind of save the world in the way. I guess it's the NOL's way of not showing favoritism I guess.**_" The voice replied as Makoto felt her head nod yes towards the voice's choice of words.

"_**I mean that's fair, If they did just let us graduate without taking the final exam at least it would make it seem like they are desperate for new blood to join their ranks. At least this way you can say you are recruiting the best of the best.**_" Makoto said as her inside thoughts did not match up with what her outside voice was saying. '_**What are you doing me?! All you need to do is just shoo away the weirdo you're talking to and just get back to your normal life!**_' Her inside mind thought but as if it was a mere footnote, her outside voice continued to entertain the voice in front of her.

"_**The best of the best huh... I guess that's true. In any case, you going to need help with any particular exam? I can teach you the best ways to study or cheat if you want.**_" The voice replied as Makoto nodded her head at that. "_**Of course, teach me everything I need to know - Sempai.**_" Makoto said as her inner mind couldn't help but be alarmed by what she said. '_**Huh?... I know this guy?**_' Her mind simply thought as she suddenly felt a sick feeling grow in her stomach as suddenly, her mind simply blanked out before snapping her back into reality violently.

* * *

**MAKOTO POV**

* * *

I couldn't help but pant several times after snapping out of that dream I had. Just what was that? What was even going on? Who was that of all people? Maybe I should cut down on the alcohol a bit but then again... Alcohol seems to be the one thing keeping me calm these days anyways. I soon reach out to grab a nice strong bottle of vokda and poured myself a shot while my mind begins to try and piece together what I had just seen.

"_**A faceless voice...of someone I don't remember?**_" Makoto commented as she drank the shot of vokda without even adding ice into it, waking her up immediately as she checked her clock real quick. "_**Might as well get ready for the mission I guess. I can always get more sleep on the airship anyways.**_" I say to myself out loud as I begin to undress and get ready for work. Normally I would wear the standard issue black uniform for the NOL intelligence department but since this is a work mission, as long as I wear the coat provided, I am allowed to wear anything else underneath it if it would assist me on the mission.

And since I am heading into Ibukido and may be dealing with Ikarugans, wearing an NOL uniform underneath may not be the best idea. At least since intelligence is not seen too often, as long as I keep my distance from people and don't let them see the crest on my coat, I should be able to just blend in nicely. What I wear underneath is just a simple lightweight outfit that doesn't have too many bits that can be caught on in the middle of a battle and also allows my tail to breathe. The downside is that I've got a bit of under boob but hey, a little sex appeal doesn't hurt and besides, comfort is way more important than trying to stay modest.

As I made sure my flask is topped up with precious alcohol, I couldn't help but look at the small table I have set up for my makeup and notice a faint glimmer that made me turn and face it. On the table itself was a small silver necklace as I picked it up and looked at it for a bit. It actually looked rather intricate with carved carefully on each part of the chain to create a rune like design. Hanging on the chain is something I never could understand.

It's basically a tag of some sorts, but something about it doesn't feel...complete. Something from it is missing as it was simply a half of a dog tag. I picked it up for a bit to look at it closely. I always figured that my folks must have gotten it for me... but if they did, wouldn't they have given me the other missing half of it? I guess it must have been cheaper for them to buy a half of a full set rather than the whole thing.

"_**Still... they shouldn't have...**_" I said out loud as I slowly began to place it on the table. As soon as I tried to do so, I felt a brief pulse hit me as I saw the necklace briefly glow for a moment, catching me by surprise as I looked at the necklace closer to see if there was any kind of gem placed on it. "_**My eyes must be playing tricks on me...or maybe the alcohol is...**_" I mumbled loudly as I took a small sip of vokda before looking back at the necklace again.

I should just put this necklace down and get going already, but something is stopping me from doing so... it's not like I don't have control over my own body... but at the same time... I don't want to leave it behind... Why am I thinking of such silly things, I'm a grown woman dammit. So why...Why can't I just leave this necklace behind?! "_**Fine! You win!**_" I shouted at the necklace as I wore it and hid it underneath my cleavage where I couldn't see it.

Why am I even thinking of wearing such things on a mission like this. Hell why am I even wasting time just dilly dallying around like a deer with headlights. I've got a job to do dammit! If Noel and Tsubaki saw me like this they would definitely give me an earful right now... Here I go again thinking about them. I guess I really do want to meet up with them one of these days for a long chat. "_**Maybe I should try messaging them again once I finish this job.**_" I mumbled to myself as I grabbed a pair of standard issue NOL cross tonfas that were provided to me and finally left my room.

* * *

**...Ready to do this mission for Captain Hazama...**

* * *

As Makoto takes off to do her duties... a figure looks out at the distance, holding onto an umbrella despite the lack of rain. "**Is that the girl that ****V****alkenhayn talked about?**" The figure asked as she adjusted her headdress. "**Yes Milady! That's Makoto Nanaya! The one that Valkenhayn says in his research was one of those involved in that war a few years ago.**" The umbrella spoke as the figure simply smiled calmly and sipped on a cup of tea. "**Then let us follow her and see where this may all lead.**" The figure said before setting the cup of tea down on a nearby table.

"**Of course, Madam Rachel!**" the umbrella spoke as Rachel Alucard jumped off the building she was standing on as she gently descended towards the ground, like a character from fiction as she began to trail Makoto Nanaya. Thus the stage has been set on what will be a new story... a story never told in the annuls of time itself. For this is a story that could have never existed, a story which never had a path leading up towards it...

* * *

**As the wheels of fate begin to turn... on this new timeline.**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING AND IT'S BEEN A WHILE! For those who may be reading this for the first time, My name's SpeedRulerLiberation but Speed's alright. I have been writing in Fanfiction for god knows how long now and I am happy to say that I have begun a new chapter of stories that I hope will captivate everyone from this point onward.**

**Now some things for everyone to know. I have written stories before that you may choose to read at your own pleasure. They are complete and won't take too long to read through so if you got some time to spare and want to know more, then go ahead and read them. Otherwise, There is no need to do so since this is a brand new story and knowing everything that happened before is not exactly necessary since they will be brought up naturally as you are reading through the story.**

**Secondly, As you all may have noticed by the title, This story will be going through the canon timeline that was established through the games but It's going to be different. There's no need for you all to have played through the entire story line to be able to keep up with this story as certain events may change from what you are familiar with. Just how much they have changed? Well if Makoto drinking is a hint for things to come then yes, there are things that have changed from the world of Blazblue that you all are familiar with.**

**Finally, Characters in the games will be appearing but I am just going to let you know now that I am not going to be using every single character that appears in the game. Firstly... Blazblue has a lot of characters and they struggle to take up space for the story. Secondly, some of the characters just won't work for the story I am trying to tell. Though I can reassure you that I will bring up the important ones and make sure everyone gets enough screen time that everyone will be happy with their inclusion. So if your favorite character just happens to not appear in the story, then hope they do so sometime in the future.**

**So now that we have gone through the introductions... JUST WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT IN THIS NEW TIMELINE!? WHAT KIND OF MISSION IS MAKOTO BEING SENT TO BY HAZAMA!? WHY IS RACHEL INTERESTED IN MAKOTO AND FOLLOWING OUR FAVORITE SQUIRREL GIRL!? Whatever the case is... I would suggest you read on if you want to know more and welcome to the ride.**

* * *

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations**_

* * *

**Notice: I do not own Blazblue. Blazblue is owned by the folks of Arc System Works and the creator Toshimichi Mori. I also do not own any OC's I may be borrowing from Other Authors and will leave them down here for you all to see when I do choose to use them**

**Hunter Long: RedBlackFlame17**


	2. Canon 1: A Simple Job Right?

( The First Chapter of this new Canon, Let us begin writing a brand new history shall we?)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 1

Sleep... Sleep was one of the very few things Makoto struggled with as she sat on her seat. She couldn't help but turn around her seat a few times as she kept her eyes closed, trying to let sleep finally overcome her. "_**It's no use...**_" Makoto mumbled as she opened her eyes in futility and reached out for the glass of red wine she had ordered for herself to hopefully drink herself to sleep... at the cost of a headache, not that she really cared since she's used to working with a hangover on the job.

Makoto then approached the window as she was greeted to the sight of a night covered Ibukido, as the ship she was taking was approached the port. Pulling out her phone, Captain Hazama had managed to send the details she needed to know about the group in question. "_**So I am to go to the middle of nowhere just to make sure that a couple of Ikarugans don't start a war... Talk about Black Ops...**_" Makoto said as she couldn't help but chuckle saying that.

"**Attention all passengers, we are soon approaching the 5****th**** Hierarchical City of Ibukido. Please stay in your seats as we begin descent.**" The pilot said as Makoto drank down her wine in one shot. Ibukido... A hierarchical city still trying to rebuild after what happened in the Ikarugan war. It's ruins often make good hiding spots for Ikarugans who had not fled to Ikaruga after the war which may be the reason why Ibukido struggles to rebuild.

'_**Let's just get this job done so I can go back home and drink my worries away...**_' Makoto thought as the ship soon made it's stop, allowing her to leave it immediately as she did not bring any sort of luggage with her and made her way towards the destination on her picture. The more ground she covered, the more the city was beginning to disappear behind her. As soon as she saw nothing but forest, she began to inspect the forest ground for tracks.

Even if it was in the dark, As long as she could feel the ground for the presence of movement, she could just keep moving across a certain direction. The only problem she had was that the picture that Hazama gave her was that of a former laboratory, meaning that she might be walking into some experimental stuff in the process. Other than that, it's just another day in the work office for Makoto Nanaya, secret Intelligence spy.

Soon, she made it to her destination and something was already off. There was nobody watching the entrance, nobody making walks around the place. Even when she was trying to find tracks, all she got was nothing. Something was off... but she had to proceed. But before she did so, she might as well contact her superior on the matter as she pulled out her communications device to the NOL. "Lieutenant Nanaya to Captain Hazama. Reporting, I am currently at the outpost on the picture. Want to know on further orders." Makoto said as sat down and waited for the reply.

"**Hello, Hello. Lieutenant are you there?**" Hazama's voice called out as she cannot help but sigh at her superior's nonchalant attitude. "**I'm here Captain, I am at the rebel outpost. I am going to begin infiltration...**" Makoto reported as Hazama paused for a bit before clearing his voice. "**Well...that's good and all, but you're not actually there to deal with Ikarugan rebels.**" Hazama said, surprising her as she realized what was going on.

"**Don't tell me, the Ikarugan rebels were an excuse for me to do the actual mission you guys wanted me to do.**" Makoto deduced as clapping could be heard. "**And that's why you're my favorite worker. Good job deducing that so easily.**" Hazama complimented as Makoto rubbed her forehead, just awaiting her actual orders from the man. "**Well... spill it out, what's the real mission?**" Makoto asked as she grabbed her flask to sip a bit of gin into her mouth.

"**Well... that area you're in has been reported to be leaking out some strange energy... not Seithr but something even weirder. Command wants you to check to see what it is.**" Hazama explained as Makoto nodded her head at that, "**So what kind of area am I in right now Just want to make sure.**" Makoto asked, knowing that information is very important. "**You're standing in a former laboratory but you can tell from the picture. The more important thing to know is that you're standing on the site of a cauldron.**" Hazama said, making Makoto rub her forehead even more as she realized that the deeper she goes, the more shit begins to get complicated.

"**Is this also a reason why you didn't ask the NOL Ibukido branch to investigate? So that they don't hate the NOL more than they currently do?**" Makoto questioned as she didn't like how secretive the NOL was being... especially by running operations other other branches backs. "**With the amount of hate mail we have been receiving as of late from them, it would be best if we kept our interactions with them as peaceful as we can.**" Hazama explained as Makoto sighed, hating the secrecy of the job but knew she had no say in the matter.

"**Just send me everything I need to know about this place and I will make sure that everything is properly investigated with.**" Makoto said as she placed her flask back on her hip. "**Will do Lieutenant... by the way, please don't drink on the job again. You've already been given a few warnings by command already.**" Hazama said as Makoto simply ends the call at that moment, not wanting to hear him lecture her about what she should be doing and to just stop hearing his grating voice.

"_**Right...now that I got my real job... let's bring some bread back for the family shall we?**_" Makoto said out loud, punching her fists together as she made her way into the dilapidated ruins to see for herself what kind of ancient secrets lay buried, as well as weird mysterious energies if there was any to be found. As she began to take more and more footsteps into the abandoned building, all that lingered in her mind was that she was going through a routine job...

* * *

**...But not all jobs will remain routine for long...**

* * *

**MAKOTO POV**

* * *

The first few steps I took in these ruins were horrible. The ground was either about to crumble at the slightest of steps and the ceiling looked like It wants to cave in at any moment. Soon I managed to receive the documents that I was due as I began to read up on the info that was on this base. "_**Alright then... let's see what kind of secrets this base is holding back from us shall we?**_" I wondered to myself as I opened up one of the files and stared at the information.

"_**Five years ago... The cauldron gates were sealed after the destruction of Ibukido to prevent seithr from leaking out...**_" I read, paraphrasing the report as she looked at the cauldron itself to double check on the report. "_**Yup, still closed alright.**_" I noted as I began to look for a way down. According to the report, the energy source was leaking from below, so below is the logical place for me to check out.

Good thing the device that the NOL provided me also contains a scanner... rudimentary but good enough to get the job done. As I began to sweep my wrist around the area, all I got were just small traces of energy... maybe it's seithr...or the energy I am looking for. Whatever the case is, it's not what I am looking for and I need to keep searching. My eyes looked around a bit more only to catch on something rather interesting.

It was a broken wall, just like all the broken walls present in this place but something about this one was weird... The color was slightly wrong and the pieces didn't really match as my hand stroked the cracks on it to realize that something was there. "_**A door huh... looks like it's stuck though...**_" I mumbled as I pulled out my tonfas and began to charge up on seithr. As much as the NOL may want to keep this place intact, if I want to finish this job as soon as possible, I have got to do this.

"_**BIG BANG SMASH!**_" Soon, a massive astral fist collides with the wall, smashing it and the door completely to dust as the ruins rumbled for a moment, forcing me to brace on something for a bit before they subsided. Damn... the building is in much more worse shape than I had originally thought. Before I could even look at what's in front of me, a huge amount of seithr hits me in the face, forcing me to cough a lot as I pulled out the standard issue Seithr Gas Mask provided to help me breathe a little as I turned on the flashlight to see where on Earth I am going.

In front of me...a passageway... Yay a long hallway...just great. Before proceeding, I make sure to cast an ars magus spell on myself to protect myself from the Seithr's effects as I began to walk forward. As I did so, I noticed the ground was slanting a little so I decided to speed up the walking to grab a nearby steel plate and use it as a makeshift sled, covering so much more ground then I would have if I had just decided to take it easy with more walking.

As soon as I ended up at the bottom, there it was... a cauldron. I have to admit... this is the first time I get to see one so up close and not in some NOL base tour where they don't even let you near the damn thing for safety reasons... screw that, if we are going to have one in Every NOL base, we might as well know what we are dealing with in the first place. I pull out the scanner and began to scan around the area for any other energies that are not coming from the cauldron in the first place but nothing...

"_**God this is starting to look like a bust...**_" I say to myself, wanting to finish up on the job as I turned back to the slanted hallway, ready to walk back to base to report that there was no weird energies coming from the cauldron. However I couldn't help but notice behind me a particular looking laboratory as I shook my head. "_**I should just get back and do my job... got no time for sight seeing...**_" But that temptation was too much as I could feel it beckoning towards me, that room that I would never be able to gain access to in my wildest dreams.

"_**Well... I suppose a peak wouldn't hurt.**_" I mumbled, finally succumbing to the temptation as I walked towards the control room door and opened it without hesistation. The first thing to greet me was dust... a lot of dust as I had to wave my hands to get rid of it. As soon as I was finished with that, I looked up to see the gigantic hole where the control room's roof would have been, now covered by rubble and various steel pipes penetrating the thing.

"_**Well this place sure has seen better days...**_" I thought out loud as I stroked my hand on the various dusty terminals that were strewn all over. To think, a couple of white lab coat wearing wigs would be using this place all at once at one point. As I continued to inspect the place, I noticed a small glowing light coming out from one of the terminals at the corner that really caught my eye. '_**A terminal that still has juice? I bet there's some sweet info I can get from that.**_' I thought as I walked up to the device and began to inspect it.

The first thing that came up on the screen was "**Access Restricted**". Big deal, as if some security system was going to make me stop. All I have to do is just simply bypass all of that using brute force and voila, I now have the whole history of this terminal and what kind of logs are in this. Then I managed to find the last file that was ever produced, File #5378921. "_**Now let's see what kind of secrets have been lost through time...**_" I said as I clicked on the file, opening it up for the first time in years as it's screen greeted me to a wealth of information I never thought would see the light of day.

Right...25 December 2194...Wait a minute, that's the day that Ibukido got destroyed!... So this place was still running when the explosion happened... Talk about dying for your work. Just what were they doing in the first place? "_**Third attempt to make contact with boundary via Prime Field Device #12... What is that supposed to mean?**_" The info I read out loud made no sense, perhaps if I scrolled down some more maybe I can find out what they are talking about.

I have to admit, if it wasn't for the war, I would have been more excited to get info dumps like this. I mean... this is a literal treasure trove of information that Intelligence servers don't even have. If I don't take the opportunity, who will? With my tail twitching a little, I continue reading the report with a sense of curiosity as more and more data errors begin coming up. Stupid piece of malfunctioning junk... but then again, I can't blame the equipment for being faulty when it's been so long since it had a proper reservicing.

"_**Ohhh come on... WORK!**_" I yelled, bashing my fist into the side panel of the terminal causing sparks to jump a little and fixing some of the errors on the screen. Who says you can't fix something by smashing it. My small triumph however ended when I noticed on the screen a couple of words I did not expect to see. "_**Cauldron reports...negative...**_" Wait a minute... this file, It has something to do with this cauldron? Then someone was using it before Ibukido got blasted to hell... That could explain the energy spikes that Captain Hazama was talking about...

Then suddenly without warning, the file just opened on it's own. Shit could it be that someone's trying to hack into the system? I better wrap this up quickly and get the data I need for Intelligence. "_**The 12**__**th**__** prime field device designed by Relius...Clover...**_" I had to stop talking at that moment. Colonel Clover...the same Colonel from Experimental Research and Development... Just what is he doing on a file like this?

As soon as I scrolled down to near the end of the file, I saw it...a picture attached with said file. My finger couldn't help but tremble a bit as I clicked on it. I couldn't comprehend what I was seeing... scientists surrounding the lab, a man with blond hair that matched that of Colonel Clover...but most important of all, the 12th prime field device, hanging on what seems to be support tubes and chains to keep her in place... wait a minute... that face... that looks like... Noel's?

Suddenly, out of nowhere, lightning struck me in the head as I gripped it tightly. Oh god... this hurts way more than any hangover I have ever gotten. I struggled to stay on my feet as the terminal I was using suddenly went dark before I could save any of the information stored within it. My hand lost all strength as I dropped to the ground, my consciousness fading as reality looked so fuzzy... so fleeting as the necklace attached onto my neck gleamed a little in the dim light I was in...

* * *

**...UGH...So...Sleepy...**

* * *

As Makoto continued to slumber in peace, she couldn't help but feel her shoulder get tapped on several times. "_**Come on Makoto... Wake up...**_" A voice called out as she shook her head. "_**You've been studying too hard again... come on let me make something for you.**_" The voice said as Makoto struggled to open her eyes at that. "_**You're going to make something delicious for me? Sign me up then.**_" Makoto said as she looked at the figure whose face was still obscure but this time she could see a bit of his hair.

"_**Well... good to hear you're excited for food. Don't worry I'll make breakfast.**_" the voice said as he took off, allowing Makoto to notice that he was missing an arm, opening the door as she slowly followed soon after. As soon as she did, she noticed the room that she was standing on was completely different from the room that she remembered staying in. '_**Hey... wasn't I supposed to stay in the NOL dormitories? Just where is this beauty of a place when I studied?**_' Makoto wondered.

Surrounding her was basically that of a five star lounge. The area shining with pure gold as she took a seat on a bar stool in front of an island where the man stood in front of her with his own collection of ingredients different from what the Academy provided. "_**Wow. Where did you get that beautiful cut of **__**pork**__**?**_" Makoto said as Makoto knew that this was a dream but for some reason, her dream was refusing to let her clear the fog that was blocking her view of the man in front of her.

"_**Well... The Torifune market had a few good cuts of meat so I figured why not buy it. It would be a waste not to.**_" The man said as Makoto laughed a bit when she heard that. "_**You sure got a keen eye for all things food.**_" Makoto said as The man looked at her before punching her at the shoulder. "_**And you got a big belly and a lot of metabolism to burn it. So that makes us both even.**_" The voice said as Makoto laughed at that as she began to think about what she should choose for dinner.

"_**In that case, Can I get the pork please?**_" Makoto requested, unable to resist the delicious pork belly that was in front of her. As her dream self continued to drool at the thought of eating such a delicious meal, the real Makoto was beginning to question as to where she even eat such a legendary meal? If she really liked this meal, then why did she even forget about it in the first place. '_**Must have not been good at all... though if that's the case, what's with this memory though...**_' Makoto thought as she waited patiently for this person to finish cooking.

As she continued to stare at the mystery person cooking, she cannot help but feel her mouth begin to salivate. Even if what she was experiencing was a dream, she cannot help but feel like she's about to expect something amazing as the mysterious man soon presented in front of her a dish she has never seen before. Thick cuts of pork belly, cooked in a black like sauce as beside it was crispy fried pork skin the likes she has never seen before. Her mouth simply continues to drool as a bowl of rice is presented in front of her.

"_**Hope you enjoy this pork adobo I made. It's something new even for me.**_" The man said as Makoto continued to stare at the delicious pork dish. '_**No way... it can't be, there's no way I've had something this good in the academy ever!**_' Makoto thought as her dream was very lucid yet at the same time she can't even dream of something this delicious looking in her lifetime. Her dream self then takes a bite as without warning, a torrential storm of flavors hit her as she cannot believe what she was tasting.

'_**Oh my god! This...This slight salty sourness... It's so good!**_' Makoto thought as her dream self began to happily eat right in front of the mysterious man as he leaned on the island counter to look at her in the eyes. "_**Good to see that you're enjoying yourself. Do make sure to give your feedback on the dish so I can make it better.**_" The man said as he began to start cleaning his cooking station while Makoto ate in simple happiness.

"_**Feedback? You've got a banger of a dish already! Everyone will love this!**_" Makoto said as the main couldn't help but be surprised by that comment as he smirked a little bit and walked up to her. "_**Of course only you would say something like that.**_" The man said as dream Makoto pouted a bit. "_**How can I not! Every meal you touch is simply gold at this point! At the rate you keep cooking these delicious foods, I cannot help but worry that I am going to get numb!**_" she said as Makoto in her mind realized what she said was true.

"_**Well that is a compliment to hear from you.**_" The man said as he washed up a plate as Dream Makoto simply continued to eat her meal with a smile on her face. '_**I...I was so happy back at the academy huh...**_' Makoto thought as she couldn't help but think about what she was like back in the past, being surrounded by friends and people she trusted compared to her now lonely self. Granted her other friends are happy and working hard right now... the fact that she hasn't see them in a while still depresses her deep inside.

* * *

?: _**Something on your mind Makoto?**_

Dream Makoto:_** Oh...it's nothing... Just thinking about the fact that once this exam is over, we will have a week till we have the dance.**_

?: _**Dance? You mean the academy ball?**_

Dream Makoto: _**Yeah... I mean... Noel's got Hunter and Tsubaki managed to convince Jin to take her out... now granted we are dating and all but...**_

?: _**Yeah... we're still keeping a low profile about our relationship aren't we.**_

* * *

'_**Wait a minute...a relationship? What on earth... did I... wait I dated someone back at the Academy!?**_' Makoto thought as nothing was starting to make sense in her mind. From what she remembered, she never had any boyfriends, let alone one who could cook this well. "_**Yeah... as much as I want to let everyone else know... I don't know if I am ready for that kind of reveal yet...**_" Dream Makoto said as the man simply sighed and got closer to her.

"_**It's alright Makoto, nobody's trying to force you to do so. I am just glad Tsubaki's keeping it a secret for us... besides, I don't mind keeping it a secret, it just means that the times we do get to spend together, they are quite special.**_" Then...like lighting, The man simply kisses her in the lips as this was enough to shock Makoto out of the dream she was having as she panted heavily on the ground she laid on, eyes wide open as she gripped her head in pain.

"_**Just...Just what was that?!..**_" Makoto said out loud as her instinctively reached out for her flask and realized it was missing as she couldn't help but swear a bit. '_**Did I drop it when I lost consciousness?.. no... that's impossible...**_' Makoto thought as she patted herself until she felt something hidden at the breast pocket of her jacket as it had strangely became the NOL intelligence coat she normally wear.

"_**The hell... I swear I chose a more...discreet jacket.**_" Makoto said out loud as she pulled out a disk from it, looking at it in pure confusion. What it was doing in her pocket, she has absolutely no clue. '_**Nobody's ordered me to bring a disk... What's inside her**__**e**__** exactly though...**_' Makoto thought as she looked at it from various angles. Just what was she doing with such a thing in the first place? She was not asked by Hazama to save any data and she also didn't need to deliver it to anywhere, so it must be important for something else entirely.

"_**I guess there's no point sitting around and doing nothing, I might as well take a look around.**_" Makoto says loud to herself but the moment she does that, was when she realizes that there's so much more going on. She wasn't at the ruins of Ibukido, staring at the gaping hole of the cauldron but at the cargo bay of an NOL cargo airship that was stopped in Kagutsuchi. '_**The fuck... why the hell am I at Kagutsuchi all of the sudden... Did I drink too much and just pass out at that moment?**_' Makoto thought as nothing was matching up with her memory of what she experienced when she blacked out earlier.

"_**Just what on earth is even going on at this point?**_" Makoto said to herself as she realized the ship has officially docked and there was no point in her just standing around and doing nothing. '_**Might as well go and see what's going on in Kagutsuchi... might also figure out who am I supposed to give this disk to.**_' Makoto thought as she kept her disk safely on her once again as she looked at for the exit out of this airship... unfortunately for Makoto Nanaya...

* * *

**...This was only just beginning...**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING!? I am glad for the response that the prologue has received and everyone's been eagerly asking some questions. Well, first of all, there will be OC's from the previous stories popping up. Just don't expect them to appear like in the next few chapters. Don't worry, the OC's that you know and love will make their appearance soon so expect them to show up one of these days. I noticed some of you guys were wondering where Sora is and don't worry, he's on the way, it's just not his time to shine just yet.**

**SO! WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TO MAKOTO NANAYA!? WHAT IS EVEN HAPPENING TO HER RIGHT NOW?! JUST WHY IS SHE GETTING THESE WEIRD LUCID LIKE DREAMS AND YET SHE CANNOT DO ANYTHING TO THEM!? AND WHY IS SHE ON A SHIP AT KAGUTSUCHI ALL OF A SUDDEN!? I mean... to those who read the main line story will sorta know what is going on but at the same time, just know that this Story is going to drastically different from the story itself because Alternate timelines are so nice and Blazblue is so full of them.**


	3. Canon 2: Night Blues Clash

( The Second Canon has begun. The Wheels of fate have begin to turn as the actors assemble to the stage.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 2

Darkness... that was the first thing that greeted Makoto when she took a step out of the loading bay of the ship that she had stowed herself in. She didn't know how she even got here or why she even had a disc on her person at that moment, but she knew that she might as well get the hell out of the ship and try to figure out what is going on. Soon various small lights greeted her as she looked around the port, realizing that she was at the NOL section of the Kagutsuchi port.

'_**Looks all clear right now...**_' Makoto thought as she slowly reached out for her flask for a quick drink only to realize it was not there. When she had checked herself before for any of the belongings she had, the only thing that actually remained on her was the normal looking silver necklace that she felt a strange attraction to. Other than that, nothing else that she had brought with her to the ruins remained as she figured that she should get something to drink later on.

'_**Just what on Earth am I doing in Kagutsuchi of all places... I mean I haven't gotten orders from the captain yet but still, I highly doubt that I just blacked out and slept walked my way to that ship.**_' Makoto continued to think as she placed her hand on her head, realizing that she didn't have any kind of hangover just yet. This whole situation that she was in was simply confusing and she needed some answers at that moment.

'_**No point wasting time thinking about stuff like this, I should first find a way out of the port and maybe start trying to figure out who this disk is meant for?**_' Makoto figured as she began to walk towards the exit of the port. There was something odd about the port... the lack of people in particular was eerie as usually these kinds of ports would have more troops and guards stationed to protect everyone...

Sure the port had their quiet moments but deserted like the way it is currently? Never in a million years unless a criminal was nearby the port that forced everyone to give pursuit but other than that, standard NOL procedures dictates that you stay in your post and help ensure that the delivery of NOL goods go smoothly. Someone is going to have one hell of a field day should command find out their troops were slacking.

Makoto however didn't mind this as it simply meant that she was going to be able to sneak into Kagutsuchi while not leaving a paper trail for anybody to follow. '_**For once, that is actually a good thing for my job. If I did leave a trail then things might have gotten **__**awkward... especially if I have to explain to Captain Hazama that I ended up in Kagutsuchi all of the sudden.**_' As soon as Makoto thought that, she immediately saw a blue fabric flow as she took cover immediately. She had just a few more steps to make to get out of the port and now there was an NOL officer patrolling around.

'_**I guess command must have asked for someone to come over here to check out the missing troops.**_' Makoto figured as she decided that she needed to keep some distance at least despite wearing her NOL uniform. If there was something her time in intelligence has taught her, it's that you shouldn't just jump to conclusions when it comes to first glance as she slowly crept up towards the direction where the blue fabric flowed.

As she stood where the man was, she noticed something red on the ground as she traced her finger on it, before bringing it closer to a light; Blood... Blood was what she was looking at as she realized that the person she was following was currently bleeding badly and will need some kind of medical attention as soon as possible. This raised more questions to her previous thought that the person was sent to find out what happened to the NOL troops at the port as what if there was someone who could be murdering NOL officials.

'_**Wait a minute... if that is the case... don't tell me that this is Ragna The Bloodedge's doing?**_' Makoto thought as she remembered the day that the man became only one of the rare few to ever recieve the dreaded SS rating by the NOL Bounty board and also the highest bounty ever published. White hair with a red right eye and a green left one, Makoto couldn't help but rub her forehead as she wondered if this Bloodedge could be the man she keeps seeing in her dreams.

'_**Nah... Can't be... his hair may be white but it doesn't have any blond tips.**_' Makoto quickly dismissed as she knew that should she encounter the man, she should run away or if she's forced to fight, fight long enough that she can find a way to escape. The problem with her current train of thought is that she doesn't even know what his fighting capability is, only knowing that he likes to fight with a gigantic blade that can transform itself into a scythe form for range and cutting power.

"_**Dammit Makoto! Don't get distracted! You need to go and find that NOL officer or not NOL officer... also note to drink some alcohol otherwise I am going to be seriously stressed.**_" Makoto said to herself quietly, mumbling her words as her hands were reaching out for the flask that didn't exist as she continued to follow the trail leading to a bridge where the blue clothed man was standing at, clutching his stomach region in pain as he struggled to stay standing, placing his weight onto the railing.

As she quietly approached the man, the smell of blood became stronger to her nose as she knew the man was hurt and hurt badly. Makoto slowly reached out for her weapons, ready to draw them should the man try to fight back against her. Before Makoto could grip her tonfas tightly, yellow hair with green eyes suddenly turn towards her direction, forcing her to take cover once again as she got a small glimpse of his face, but it was enough for her to be shocked as she realized who it was.

Makoto immediately recomposed herself as she slowly approached the familiar man. On the side of his hip he clutched Yukianesa, one of the famous Nox Nyctoreses used in the fight against the Black Beast during the dark war. She cleared her throat as the man who is known as Jin Kisaragi immediately pointed her blade right at her neck before realizing who he was. "**Oh! You're Tsubaki's friend aren't you?**" Jin said as Makoto nodded her head, not daring to move as she didn't want to make any sudden movement.

"**Yes ****Major Kisaragi****... I'm Makoto and I am not here to hurt you.**" Makoto explained as Jin didn't dare to lower his blade as she could understand the caution that he was using at this moment. "**I know I am from Intelligence and Intelligence doesn't really have the best reputation even in the NOL, but if you want to live, you have to trust me.**" Makoto said, hoping her words will bring some sense to Jin as he lowered his blade slowly, not bothering to sheath it as she noticed the reluctance on his face to do so.

"**We should take you to the NOL Infirmary... but judging by the way you look, you don't want to do that. In that case, we can take a detour towards a Kagutsuchi clinic to patch you up.**" Makoto said, explaining her plan to Jin as he looked at his wound reluctantly before smirking a little bit. "**Still keeping your friends close huh...**" Jin said as Makoto sighed and looked at him in the eyes. "**Aren't you the same too?**" Makoto replied as he smiled away from Makoto.

"**Let's go for a clinic at the lower levels, currently the NOL is after me and going to them for help would be not the wisest option right now.**" Jin explained as Makoto simply nodded her head at that as she began to search in her phone for any Kagutsuchi clinics at the lower levels that were open at the middle of the night. As She did so, she held onto Jin's wounded body as he began to freeze as many of his injuries as possible to help lessen the burden on Makoto.

"**You don't need to do that you know... say, how has Noel been doing? She's your secretary after all.**" Makoto said, alarming Jin a bit as his eyes opened at the name. But before he could even give his answer to her, another pair of footsteps were heard as that made Makoto immediately keep her phone as she walked in front of Jin. "**Someone's coming, take cover.**" Makoto quickly said as Jin didn't say any more, taking shelter in a nearby alleyway as he moved a couple of trash cans onto himself to obscure his body, despite the stench coming from said trash.

As Jin went to cover himself, Makoto waited at the spot where Jin was as she saw a black fedora hat resting on a patch of green messy hair as the sound of knives spinning were heard as she immediately recognized who it was as the man eagerly approached her. "**Ahhh, Lieutenant Nanaya! What brings you here to Kagutsuchi.**" The person... her captain, Hazama, said as she didn't know what to say at this point but she just knew she had to play it cook.

* * *

Makoto: **I came back from that mission to Ibukido you sent me for.**

Hazama:** Huh? What mission to Ibukido?**

Makoto: **You know, the mission to investigate the weird energies coming out from the Ibukido cauldron?**

Hazama:**... My Lieutenant, I don't even know what you're talking about, I never asked you to do that or sent such a request in the first place.**

Makoto: **Look I know you like to troll sometimes, but I am being serious right now so you can cut the trolling act now.**

* * *

Hazama simply tilted his head in pure confusion as he began to scratch his head. "**But I am speaking the truth Miss Nanaya, I have never heard of the weird energies in Ibukido you were speaking off nor I ever asked you to head there in the first place.**" Hazama explained as Makoto couldn't help but feel alarmed at what was going on. Why did he not know of the mission he clearly gave her in the first place to do... was he feigning ignorance or did he truly not know...

"**But thank goodness you're here Lieutenant, I need your help right now and the Kagutsuchi NOL branch is currently lacking in firepower.**" Hazama explained as Makoto looked at him, curious to see what kind of orders he was going to give her. "**Major Jin Kisaragi recently ran away from his post at the Yabiko branch and he was spotted some where around the Kagutsuchi area, If you would be a dear and help me bring him back alive, that would be good.**" Hazama said as Makoto simply nodded her head at that.

"**Do be careful when you do decide to subdue him though, he's been injured and may be bleeding out as we speak. If you do find him alive, please do report it to me so I can start faking reports while you dispose of the body.**" Hazama ordered as Makoto simply gave him a salute. "**Of course Captain. I will go and do that right now.**" Makoto said as Hazama simply walked up to her and patted her shoulder as he gave her his signature smile.

"**I am placing my trust onto you to help me find the Major...please don't let me down now.**" Hazama said as he walked past the alleyway that Jin was hiding in, Jin steadying his breath to a near still as Hazama's eyes nearly caught sight of the small patch of blood that was beginning to form at the pile of trash as Jin's ice was slowly melting away due to the heat being produced by the metal cans. Makoto herself waited for her superior to get far enough before she quickly went to Jin to get the trash off him.

"**That was Captain Hazama... We need to get you the hell out of here right now.**" Makoto said as Jin silently nodded his head as Makoto pulled him up to his feet. As soon as she did though, she immediately felt a cold presence creep up behind her back as Captain Hazama was behind her, staring at her back with Jin Kisaragi on sight. "**See, I can count on you finding the Major for me. Good job Lieutenant.**" Hazama praised as Makoto knew the words of praise he said were not meant to be in a kind way.

"**Hazama!**" Jin shouted as Makoto was trying to remain calm in this situation as Hazama shook his head. "**Now Now Major, We don't want you raising your blood pressure now. I mean you're bleeding so much and I don't even think the NOL ward that you were in could even stop the rate you are bleeding.**" Hazama said, feigning worry as Makoto continued to stand in between Hazama and Jin as the two men locked eyes and coldly stared at each other.

"**You can go now Lieutenant. I can handle things from here.**" Hazama said as Makoto could sense malicious intent coming out from Hazama's voice. "**What are you doing holding your weapon like you are wanting to kill... Didn't you say that we are to bring him in alive?**" Makoto said as Hazama simply sighed as he had to admit, his lieutenant was a sharp woman as without even hesitating, he launched his weapon right at her, chains rattling in her ears as she quickly deflected the weapon using the cross tonfas that she had thankfully on her as her intelligence cloak flew off her.

As soon as she did so, she got a good glimpse of a green aura swimming along a long bronze like chain with a snake head ready to snap as Makoto recognized the weapon as another one of the ten Nox Nyctoreses that were created during the Dark War... Ouroboros. "**Oh... So you are planning to resist as well lieutenant... my my what a stubborn lieutenant you are.**" Hazama mused as both Jin and Makoto could clearly sense the killing intent that he was exerting as Makoto didn't even need to ask him if he had lost his mind.

"**Oh... You sure are standing firm on your ground Lieutenant... Must be the fact you are experienced with this sort of situation aren't you.**" Hazama said, having made sure to read the files of every single person on his command, especially with Lieutenant Makoto Nanaya, one of the students who took part in the siege of the Black Lotus just two years ago. Makoto herself was not fazed by the aura that Hazama was producing as her fists simply steeled themselves for a confrontation.

"**Just leave Makoto... he's after me. You don't need to get involved in this!**" Jin pleaded, wincing as Makoto knew that Jin pleading told her that Hazama was going to be a challenging opponent to face. Despite this, Makoto simply chose to steel herself as she stared down her superior. "**You know Captain... I've never liked you in the first place... never liked you when I first started, when you treat the office to boiled eggs and your constant trolling.**" Makoto said, allowing venom to be heard in her voice as Hazama couldn't help but scoff at that.

"**And I hate how much of a bitchy animal you are. Always running that stupid mouth of yours and always meddling in my affairs.**" Hazama retorted as Makoto was kind of glad the feeling was mutual as both of them could feel their respective hatred for each other leak out as Makoto sucker punched him, slugging him with the blunt side of her Cross Tonfa as Hazama simply spat out the blood that went through his mouth.

"**That was woman's intuition, the next ones are for being a terrible boss and a fucking racist!**" Makoto swore as Hazama was immediately put onto the defensive as Makoto lunged herself towards him, not relenting with her barrage of punches as Hazama used a combination of ars magus and Ouroboros's chains to deflect her blows before responding with a kick of his own to Makoto's stomach, causing her to slide on her feet as she couldn't help but smirk at that.

"**What's the matter, I thought that you didn't like to fight?**" Makoto taunted as Hazama simply clicked his tongue in frustration as he began to spin his butterfly knife on his left hand before catching it with his right. "**That's it... you're so dead rodent.**" Hazama said as he began to lunge with his knife, Making Makoto dodge as the swift motion of his knife strikes prevented her from trying to use a barrier to block said attacks in the first place as he grabbed her to attempt to stab her several times in the chest.

In order to prevent this, Makoto used her Cross Tonfas to either deflect the blows to the side of her armpits or catch them on the circular part of the cross tonfas and pull them in a different direction. This strategy was not perfect however as some of his attempted stabs did result in her getting struck at her exposed stomach as she managed to punch him off her, forcing him off the clinch as she managed to disarm him in the process as she attempted to barrage him with another series of punches like she did before.

But Hazama was not going to let that happen as he quickly tossed Ouroboros to a nearby wall and used it to pull himself rapidly, escaping a swift haymaker aimed at his face before tossing Ouroboros right behind her to move rapidly towards her blind spot. As soon as he did this however, Makoto immediately turned around, spooking Hazama as he tossed his Ouroboros quickly to dodge another swift hook that Makoto delivered at his position as he did not expect what he had seen.

"**Please... do you really think you're the first person who has tried to hit me by my backside? Compared to him, you're much slower.**" Makoto said, pausing when she realized what she had just said as Hazama quickly took that brief pause to unleash a quick attack as Ouroboros managed to strike her by her stomach, slamming her to the wall as she couldn't believed she allowed herself to become distracted like that. Slapping herself in the face, she immediately dodged the stab that Hazama tried to do with Ouroboros and grabbed the chain instead, pulling with her full strength as he was thrown off his feet in the process.

Soon, she had him swinging in a giant swing as Hazama kept his cool despite being thrown around like this. Makoto then slammed his body into the wall, making him cough even more blood as Jin knew that Hazama was probably toying with Makoto and letting her get away with this. He knew that he had to prepare some sort of getaway plan if things were going to get worse. As he began to look for a potential escape route, Hazama was starting to get a better understanding of how his lieutentant fought.

Reports are one thing, getting to fight the real deal is often times not only more knowledgeable... it just feels more satisfying to see that person in action. As much as he wants to enjoy himself though, Hazama knew that she was standing in his way for a paycheck as he felt himself getting pulled once again as Makoto's strength was truly fearsome. He then witnessed Makoto charge up her fist as he instinctively knew to raise his arms to guard as he soon felt the impact of said fist reverberate throughout his body, causing him immense pain as he had just experienced Makoto's drive for the first time. The sheer power associated with that fist is something he never thought would be possible as he had to release himself from Ouroboros to prevent Makoto from yanking him around left and right. "**Okay miss cocky... Let's see you try to handle this then!**" Hazama shouted, his annoyance leaking out a bit as he set Ouroboros through the ground, alarming Makoto in the process.

Suddenly without warning, she felt something bite onto her shoulder as she immediately tried to grab the offending object only for it to escape her grasp. Then another... and another...and soon the bites began to pile on her, forcing her into a defensive position, blocking and deflecting as many of these bites as possible. But when the thing biting you is a metal head, it is going to be really painful trying to handle such a dangerous thing in the first place.

It was then the solution came to Makoto akin to lightning striking the ground as she raised her fist to strike the metal head as it came towards her head on, slamming it to the ground as she stomped on the chain, restricting it's movement in the process as Hazama was quick to respond by tossing another metal head right towards her. This was made easier however as she was able to use the chain she had restricted on the ground to purposely yank on the attack, causing it to snap dangerously close to her face as she wasn't expecting it to work in the first place.

'**Damn... That's a beastkin's intuition for you... always able to act on their feet like so.**' Hazama thought as Makoto knew that she was not going to get anywhere playing defense like this as more offense was needed in this scenario. She then knew she had to go for it as she suddenly released the chain, allowing the chain to retract as she soon sprinted towards Hazama at full speed, fists up and covering her mouth as she began to bob and weave her head.

'**Now what is she trying to do.'** That was the thought that raced through Hazama's head before he saw a second Makoto appear. Then a third but this one was soaring in the sky along with a fourth. '**Did the rodent just duplicate herself? Duplication Ars magus huh...**' Hazama thought as it was such a basic level ars magus spell but this one felt very different... very realistic as he realized that they all were coming at him with attacks.

Hazama knew he had the reaction speed to block just one so he decided to settle for the ground Makotos, creating in his hand two barrier's each as they soon slammed right into the barrier, vanishing in the process as this caught him by surprise as the two Makoto's in the air were coming towards him at high speed. Using his quick thinking, he blocked the Makoto who was higher above his head but suddenly out of nowhere, the lower Makoto dropped to the ground, immediately telling him that she was the real one.

But he was unable to act at that moment because he was currently frozen in the motion of blocking the fake. This was Makoto's chance that she needed as she cocked her fist backwards and began to charge energy into it as Hazama could see a massive ars magus circle manifest behind her. Hazama had seen this in pictures and knew how powerful it was, so all he could do was simply grit his teeth as Makoto's right fist glowed bright orange for a brief moment.

"**BIG BANG SMASH!**" Makoto Yelled as a massive energy fist came out of her arm, lunging towards Hazama as the attack landed true and sent him flying towards a nearby building, causing some parts of the wall to collapse as Makoto thought that was over as she had known the commander as someone who was afraid of fighting for some reason, so it told her that he was the kind who could not take a big hit like that.

"_**Time to go and check on Jin.**_" Makoto said as she had turned her back to go and find Jin. But it was in that split second that she did so that she immediately felt a sudden rush of blood lust crawl up her back as she turned around to see Hazama already so close to her face and feet planted on the ground. "**Don't you get cocky...**" Before Makoto could even react, a foot was launched right into her chin, smashing it hard as she felt her whole head go upwards as her feet lost their footing.

"**YOU STUPID BITCH!**" Hazama swore as Makoto felt a massive wave of reinforcement Ars Magus packed into that one kick be used in an offensive manner as she flew high into the air, unable to stop herself as Hazama launched Ouroboros, snapping down on her left leg as he sent her plummeting towards the ground and into the alleyway where Jin was as trash flew out of the way, scattering everywhere as she shook herself off and stood up, the pain coursing through her leg in the process.

"**My My My... now this is what I would like to call an unexpected development indeed...**" Hazama said as Makoto couldn't stop panting, fighting on full power right from the bat and taking a lot of good shots in the process. "**Now I can see why Relius wants to get his hands on you now... I had thought that man had lost his mind but you proved otherwise.**" Hazama continued as this alarmed Makoto a little bit.

Colonel Relius Clover... a man of little mystery. She knew very little of him, even when she tried to dig up information about him out of curiosity. This only made her even more wary of what is going on as she looked at Hazama in the eyes. "**Just...Just what is he planning to do with me?**" Makoto questioned as Hazama shrugged. "**Who knows... All I know is that if I knock you out and bring you and Jin in, I can give you to Relius and let him do all of the examinations he wants.**" Hazama said with a slight grin on his face as Makoto clenched his fist even more, feeling disgusted by what he had just said.

"**So what... like I care about me right now...**" Makoto said catching Hazama by surprise as his ears were opened. "**Just what are you planning to do with Jin?.. hell... what are you going to do with Tsubaki Yayoi and Noel Vermillion!**" Makoto shouted as suddenly, the smile Hazama had dropped as suddenly a scowl appeared on his face. "**Who the fuck are you.**" Hazama ominously said as Makoto immediately felt her blood run cold as she realized that something had changed.

Hazama was not laughing one bit. His facial expression had changed completely. No longer did he had that shit eating smile on his face nor was he trying to joke around. His eyes narrowed to a small slit as she couldn't help but feel her feet slowly start to shut down as her fists began to shake. "**ANSWER ME YOU RAT! WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU!**" Hazama yelled, his tone menacing as she immediately had to raise her arms to guard an attack as she struggled to guard it.

Makoto tried to counter attack but Hazama was not going to have any of her shenanigans as he lunged with his thumb right into her eye, blinding her for a bit as he kneed her at the stomach. He then pulled out his knife as he began to slash at Makoto's arms, causing them to bleed as she struggled to just keep her guard up. '_**What the fuck... I just said Noel, Tsubaki and Jin's names and he's gone mad! But also... what is this blood lust coming out from him!**_'

Makoto finally managed to launch an attack of her own, striking him on the stomach. But Hazama ignored this level 3 punch as he simply grabbed her arm, ready to break it as she saw his elbow rise into the air to do so as Makoto prepared herself to have her arm broken. But nothing happened, In fact Hazama simply stopped what he was doing and released her as his eyes were no longer on her but on a different person... a Jin Kisaragi as Makoto herself realized what was happening.

Both Jin and Hazama locked eyes for a long time... not daring to speak a word as Hazama made a gesture with his middle finger, taunting Jin to attack him as Jin decided to oblige, stabbing the ground and creating an ice pillar, instantly freezing Hazama in the process as he ran towards Makoto and swooped her off her feet before she could realize what was going on. "**We are getting the hell out of here Lieutenant!**" Jin yelled as he ran as fast as he could, not caring for which direction he went as Hazama soon had Ouroboros smash him out of the ice pillar as he noticed his hat had fallen off his head when Jin froze him.

"**SIGH... That little bitch...**" Hazama muttered as he picked up his black fedora and placed it on his green hair. He couldn't help but grind his teeth as he was annoyed by what was going on. "**Oh you better thank me when I bring her in for you Relius... because she's starting to prove to be a pain in the ass...**" Hazama muttered as he kicked the trash can hard, denting the metal in the process as hearing Makoto Nanaya mention the name Noel Vermillion...

* * *

**...made him feel sick in the stomach...**

* * *

As Jin continued to Run, Makoto was trying to get him to stop. "**That's enough Jin! You're overexerting yourself!**" Makoto yelled as she tried to get off. But Jin was not going to let her go as he shook his head. "**I can't do that Makoto, not until we are far enough.**" Jin retorted which annoyed Makoto. She wanted to punch him to stop him but couldn't do so for 1.) She would be hurting Tsubaki in the process by hurting Jin and 2.) Jin himself was injured and she would feel bad hurting an injured man.

'_**Still... just what was with that look in Hazama's eyes... that killing intent... it was completely different from the normal killing intent I would sense from others**_.' Makoto thought as she suddenly felt Jin fall to the ground, using her tail to cushion the fall as Jin himself couldn't move anymore, his body crumpled to the ground as his bleeding began to intensify. "**Shit, I told you not to push yourself like that Jin!**" Makoto said as she immediately tore off a portion of Jin's coat as she tied it around the injury.

"**I'm grateful for you rescuing me... but if you die now then Tsubaki would be sad you know!**" Makoto said as Jin couldn't help but keep quiet about that as he looked at her in the eyes. "**I know Makoto... I know...**" Jin only said as Makoto rubbed her hair and ears. "**if you know it then just stay quiet and let me find you a hospital dammit!**" Makoto said as her senses were at an all time high as suddenly, she felt a presence behind her as she turned towards the direction she felt said presence.

"**WHO'S THERE!**" Makoto yelled, attracting the person who was following as said person sighed. "**It looks like you are in need of help madam! May I be of assistance to you?**" The voice said as a man with a long red scarf leapt off the building he was standing from to where Makoto was. She immediately recognised the man as an Ikarugan, with his traditional Japanese clothes that exposed his midriff, and a gigantic 55 inch nail strapped to his back. "**Who are you?**" Makoto simply asked as the man simply smiled.

* * *

"**I am a hero of Justice, Bang Shishigami."**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING ON THIS FINE DAY!? I Hope you all have been satisfied with the pacing of the story so far. I know that some of you have probably played through the stories so I am trying to not waste too much time on the story itself so we can develop more of the characters in the process. That being said, I still hope that I have been able to give a different spin to the story being told in the process.**

**SO NOW WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO MAKOTO NANAYA AND JIN KISARAGI!? JUST WHAT IS THEIR SAVIOR BANG SHISHIGAMI GOING TO DO TO SAVE THEM!? AND WHAT IS WITH RELIUS'S ATTRACTION TOWARDS THE SQUIRREL GIRL?! Well... if you want to figure out these questions and many more, you will just have to read on to see what happens next.**


	4. Canon 3: Ronin-Gai Remembrance

( A new canon and more questions await Makoto Nanaya as she tries to help Jin Kisaragi in the process.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 3

Ronin-Gai, A district populated by Ikarugans who fled after the Ikarugan war seeking shelter. Makoto was familiar with the story as she sat down at the living room of her and Jin's savior, Bang Shishigami. "**I hope I wasn't away for too long Miss Nanaya.**" Bang said as he entered the room, sitting across her as Makoto simply shook her head. "**Of course not Mister Shishigami... I'm just glad you decided to give Jin a doctor and everything.**" Makoto said as Bang smiled.

"**Well, he was injured after all, and as a hero of justice, one does not simply abandon those in need.**" Bang replied as he reached out and pulled a bottle of Sake with a couple of small cups. "**You must be thirsty. If Sake's not to your liking...**" But before he could finish his sentence, Makoto reached out with her hand and pulled the bottle of sake closer to her. "**It's alright, Sake's good enough for me.**" Makoto said as much to Bang's surprise, Makoto simply drank the Sake straight from the bottle, not even bothering to pour it into the cup in front of her.

"**MY! You must have been that thirsty to drink like that!**" Bang said in shock as Makoto felt the numbing release of alcohol rush through her as she smiled. "**Yeah, I like my alcohol... also good sake you got there. Ikarugan made?**" Makoto asked, covering her mouth as she burped a bit, making Bang laugh. "**Ikarugan made, through and through. I am so glad you are enjoying it.**" Bang said as his subordinates brought a second bottle of sake into the room and a jug of water along with it.

"**Now drink some water before you become too drunk. We do have some things to discuss.**" Bang said as Makoto knew that Bang wanted to speak some serious stuff as she took his suggestion and drank a glass of water. "**Now first of all, do explain what happened to you and your friend. I don't believe that it was just a night out at the town gone wrong.**" Bang said as Makoto finished her glass of water while reaching out towards the jug and pouring herself another glass of water.

"**Well... I was wondering around the ports when I found my friend injured by my boss. My boss then tried to kill him and if I wasn't there, he would have died for sure.**" Makoto explained as Bang nodded his head at her explanation. "**I see... it would explain some of your injuries as well...**" Bang said as Makoto nodded her head. "**Can...Can we lay low here for a little while. Jin needs time to recover from his injuries and the NOL are looking for him.**" Makoto said as Bang simply nodded his head.

"**Don't worry, I will make sure he's safe and taken care off...**" Bang said as he stood up. "**Thanks Mr Shishigami... for taking care of the Hero of Ikaruga and all...**" Makoto thanked as Bang looked at her in confusion. "**The Hero of Ikaruga? I'm sorry do you mean Mr Mutsuki?**" Bang asked as Makoto looked at him confused as well. "**No... I was talking about Jin.**" Makoto said as Bang scratched his head a bit before looking at her seriously.

"**You may want to rest as well Miss Nanaya... I think you are more injured than you think.**" Bang suggested as Makoto looked at him more confused before deciding to ask him one more question. "**So wait a minute... are you trying to say that Kagura Mutsuki was the one responsible for killing Lord Tenjo?**" Makoto questioned as Bang nodded his head at that. "**Why yes, that's why he's known as the Hero of Ikaruga.**" Bang replied as Makoto paused a bit hearing that.

"**T-Thanks for letting me know... Maybe we can talk more about this later?**" Makoto asked as Bang simply smiled at her. "**Why of course Miss Nanaya, My subordinates have prepared a room for you to rest for the time being as well as a temporary change of clothes if you wish. I would also recommend you explore Ronin-gai for a while if you feel energized.**" Bang suggested as Makoto nodded her head at that.

"**Maybe you can personally give me that tour around Ronin-Gai? A local would be more preferable than being by myself.**" Makoto said as Bang smiled. "**I would be honored to do so.**" Bang simply said as he simply gestured Makoto towards his subordinates as she was led into her room where a simple dark blue Yukata was neatly laid on a futon with a specially made cut hole for her tail to go through. Inside her room was a small spring that she guessed was for her to relax in as she figured that would be a good idea to do so, stripping down and soaking in the hot natural springs onto her naked body.

"_**Kagura Mutsuki's the hero of Ikaruga...**_" Makoto muttered as she stared right at the sky, wondering what the hell was going on. Wasn't Jin Kisaragi the Hero of Ikaruga? If not... then that must mean she's in a different world from the world she came from. '_**That would explain why I ended up on that ship and here in Kagutsuchi instead of Ibukido... but what brought me here in the first place...**_' Makoto wondered until something clicked in her mind.

'_**Wait a minute...I was exploring that cauldron in Ibukido...don't tell me...**_' As Makoto began to put the pieces together, she could hear rustling as she looked down and noticed that she was still wearing the necklace that she had brought with her on a whim. Lifting it closer to her so she can see it, she was about to remove it when she felt a sudden pulse come out from it as she clutched her head for a bit. "_**Just what is with this damn necklace... why...why do I feel such a reluctance to take it off even when I am trying to relax**_." Makoto wondered as she allowed the necklace to remain on her neck, now exposing it on her skin as she sunk deeper into the water.

'_**And More importantly... it's Kagura Mutsuki of all people who is the Hero of Ikaruga...**_' Makoto thought as she began to bubble up the hot spring, her mind thinking about what Bang said as her face turned red. Kagura Mutsuki, the head of the Mutsuki household, one of the 12 Duodecim... and also a person who has an infamous reputation as a shameless flirt and womanizer. '_**How on earth did I end up in a world where that womanizing idiot ended up being the hero...**_' Makoto thought as her mind couldn't help but wonder off towards the past...

* * *

**...A past she had hoped to forget so many times...**

* * *

**FLASHBACK**

**MAKOTO POV**

* * *

It was the NOL new years party of 2199, I was at the NOL headquarters in Yabiko, enjoying the company of Noel and Tsubaki who were able to make it this year. "**It's so good to see you again Makoto. How has things been for you?**" Noel asked, wearing a simple light blue dress, her hair now growing past her neck as this was a formal affair and they didn't need to wear their uniforms for this day.

"**I am good, work in Intelligence has been busy but I have been doing good.**" I said as I couldn't help but stroke the black dress I wore a little bit. I had to have this dress custom made since most people don't really make dresses for my size. "**That's good to hear, when I first heard that you wanted to work in intelligence, I would have thought that you would not work as hard**." Tsubaki said as she looked so good in her simple yet elegant white dress.

"**What about you Tsubaki, How's work coming at your post lately?**" I asked as Tsubaki scratched her head a little bit. "**I guess you can say it's good. I have been working hard as lieutenant and if things go well, I might a promotion soon.**" Tsubaki said with honesty in her voice as Noel couldn't help but have her eyes shine at that. "**That's great Tsubaki! You're as hardworking as always.**" Noel said as I couldn't help but smile as I drank my glass of champagne.

"**And what about you Noel? Jin-Nii-sama hasn't been working you hard lately now?**" Tsubaki asked as Noel paused for a bit, as if hesitant to answer as she shook her head. "**Not really... he's been good to me.**" Noel replied as we noticed her look at her phone for a bit as we noticed her phone's wallpaper was that of Hunter. "**You still really haven't been able to get over the loss of Hunter...**" I said as Noel nodded her head.

Hunter Long... one of the few friends I had back in the academy. After the Black Lotus Rebellion, when we were recruited into the NOL, he was immediately given his own squadron which he had called the Vermillion Dragons. Unfortunately a series of incidents happened and well...Short story is that Hunter's no longer in this world with us... "**Hunter's memorial day is coming soon... will you be able to make it?**" I asked Noellie as she was clearly trying to hold back a tear as she shook her head.

"**I have been working hard for Jin ****and I feel that this year is going to be no different****... so I don't think I will be able to make it to the memorial this year...**" Noel replied as Tsubaki kept quiet a bit before replying. "**Unfortunately work has been piling up and this year is going to be especially busy... so I won't be able to go for the service as well.**" Tsubaki said as I couldn't help but feel saddened by that. I can understand Noel because it's quite painful for her to go to the memorial service of her first and closest boyfriend. She's probably not ready for that yet.

Tsubaki on the other hand...I can't help but worry that she's starting to work herself too hard. "**In any case... Do you guys want to hang out after the party? It has been a while since we actually had the time for each other.**" I asked as Noel and Tsubaki looked at each other before looking at me. "**I would like to... but Jin says that we are leaving as soon as the party is over. Saying that he doesn't want to stay for too long**" Noel explained as Tsubaki nodded her head.

"**The same for me, I need to head back to my post soon so I can start writing up the latest batch of reports. Sorry Makoto.**" Tsubaki explained as I couldn't help but nod my head at that. I understand why they can't stay but at the same time...I cannot help but feel sad at their response. "**It's alright you two... Things have been busy ever since we joined the NOL officially. Let's try to meet up one of these days okay.**" I said as seeing Noel and Tsubaki smile was one of the best things that could happen to me that night as they soon took off, both to be with their respective superiors.

"_**Now where is that green-haired bastard...**_" I muttered, drinking my refilled glass of champagne as I soon felt my phone vibrate, making me groan as I could guess as to who it could be. '**Dear Lieutenant, I'm sorry for dropping this all of the sudden but something urgent came up and thus I cannot be at the New Years party tonight. I'm also sorry if I kept you waiting for my response. See you at work tomorrow lieutenant.**' Hazama messaged as I could help but groan before finishing my glass quickly. How dare that bitch just decide to up and leave me on my own like that. Now who am I going to spend time in this party with?

"**Why hello there Miss Nanaya. You sure look bored being all alone.**" A voice said as I turned around and saw the Black haired man of House Mutsuki, Kagura Mutsuki himself. "**Hello Kagura, congrats on your recent promotion and position to Yabiko.**" I said politely, trying to keep things professional as he looked at me up and down for a bit before grinning. "**Why thanks Makoto, I am just wondering though, do you happen to be busy after the party?**" Kagura asked as I placed my finger at my chin.

"**Well... Not really... why?**" I asked as she could feel Kagura's eyes look at me, not that I minded as I continued to drink her glass of champagne. "**Well... I am not doing anything in particular after the party... Why don't we head back to my place and get to know each other better?**" Kagura asked as I reached out for another glass. "**And why does a member of House Mutsuki want with someone like me?**" I questioned as I looked at him in the eyes intently.

"**Well... Hibiki says that I have been overworking him lately and I have been contemplating on getting myself a female secretary. Then I remembered you and the contributions you made during the Black Lotus Rebellion and the medal of valor you got for said contributions.**" Kagura explained as I couldn't help but close my eyes as I drank more champagne, starting to feel the alcohol kick in. "**Really now... That sounds awfully convenient though. I don't think I can ever take Hibiki's place as your personal assistant.**" I replied as Kagura chuckled.

"**I don't expect you to replace him Miss Nanaya. You offer a different set of skills from Hibiki such as your fighting capabilities. You would make a great secretary and information gatherer for me.**" Kagura said as I could tell this man was trying to butter me up, woo me into his dick. Yet at the same time I don't really mind the flirting he was giving me. I'm not taken at the moment, Got to live life to the fullest.

"**So in that case, Since I am so compatible, How much are you going to pay me once you get me away from Intelligence and are you going to be paying me consistently?**" I asked, moving my fingers in a money motion as Kagura laughed, "**Well for you, I am willing to pay you more than your current pay with Intelligence.**" Kagura replied as I couldn't help but grin at that. "**Then I don't mind meeting with you later on to discuss details... Though I won't be able to answer you quickly because of work.**" I said as Kagura grinned

"**Then let's not waste time and discuss business after the party. I have to get going right now.**" Kagura said as he kissed my hand before leaving, finally allowing me to slightly choke on my drink because of how much he was trying to woo me. It's a good idea to build up my contacts in the NOL and Hibiki himself is not a bad person to become friends with... It's just with Kagura I get this weird feeling that I am going to be sleeping with him soon... Oh well...

* * *

**...Not like I am seeing anybody right now...**

* * *

As soon as Makoto finished relieving that small memory from the past year, her face couldn't help but have an epiphany. Something about her memory doesn't alight right with her dreams lately. If she did have a boyfriend back in the academy, then why in the NOL New Years Party she instead decided to go with Kagura? When she tried to think about it reasonably, the conclusions she drew clashed with the dreams that she have been having.

'_**If I really got dumped by this academy boyfriend that I had... Then why do I still remember him fondly? I mean I even still remembered the food he cooked for me and he's a really nice guy too..**_.' Makoto thought as she rubbed her forehead greatly before standing up in the springs, having soaked enough of the water as she walked back to her room and began to slowly dress herself in the Yukata Bang provided her.

"_**Just who is this guy that I remembered yet at the same time I don't...**_" Makoto said out loud as she sat down on her futon before hearing the door knock. "**Miss Nanaya, It's me Bang. I brought some green tea if you want some.**" Bang said as Makoto decided to go to the door. "**That sounds like a good thing to have right now.**" Makoto replied as soon, Bang was pouring green tea for both himself and her as he decided to start a small conversation with her.

* * *

Bang:** So Miss Nanaya... What brought you and your friend here to Kagutsuchi?  
**

Makoto:** I can't really say for Jin... I didn't ask him myself. As for me... I don't really remember myself.**

Bang: **Remember? You mean like Amnesia?**

Makoto:**... No not really. It's more like...I remember what happened but when I woke up, I don't really remember what I did to end up there... like a hangover you know.**

Bang: **Hmmm that is concerning... and you asking me who the Hero of Ikaruga also had me a bit worried. So I am going to ask you a crucial detail that may help shed some light on your current predicament.**

* * *

"**Go on, I'm all ears.**" Makoto said as Bang took a sip of green tea to rejuvenate himself. "**You are familiar with the Black Lotus war? Am I correct?**" Bang said as Makoto nodded her head. "**Yeah, I took part in it. Won a medal of valor in it too.**" Makoto said as that raised Bang's eyes a bit. "**I also remember that was the event that caused the first free city of Otsu to be formally established, marking the first city to be free from NOL control.**" Makoto continued as Bang's face told her everything she needed to know.

"**I apologize for doubting you... but what is this first free city of Otsu you speak about?**" Bang questioned as Makoto simply shook her head before placing her hand on her forehead. "**I'm sorry... I must be feeling tired and**** began dreaming ****that up...**" Makoto replied as Bang showed concern on his face as a result. "**Oh my, then you must rest as soon as possible Miss Nanaya! I will make sure nobody disturbs you if you wish to do so.**" Bang said as he stood up and took his leave. "**If you are still interested in that tour of Ronin-Gai, I am still available.**" Bang suggested as Makoto smiled at the Ikarugan ninja's kindness as he soon left her alone again.

"_**So I am in a different timeline... a timeline that doesn't match up with mine...**_" Makoto muttered as the way Bang looked when she talked about Otsu in particular answered every single doubt she had in her mind. Somehow...in some way, she is currently in a timeline where Jin is not considered the Hero of Ikaruga but instead it's Kagura Mutsuki, and there is no first free city of Otsu. That meant that something or someone was trying to get rid of her or bring her to this particular timeline...

"_**Just what is going on with me?..**_" Makoto muttered as her hand reached out and began to touch the necklace slowly. Doing so unconsciously as her mind began to wonder what is even going on in the first place. Soon she remembered the mysterious disk that was placed in her jacket as she decided to pull it out once again, looking at it intently. "_**This disk... just what is this about...**_" Makoto muttered as she looked around it for a bit before opening it up so she could see the contents inside as the paper flew out of it.

"_**What's this?**_" Makoto said as she picked up the piece of paper and quickly deduced that it was a code word as it contained a piece of paper ripped off the notebook you can get from the Kagutsuchi museum. '_**Gnuuu... This must be a code word I need to speak to someone at the Kagutsuchi museum.**_' Makoto thought as she knew that she might be reading too much into this, she cannot scratch out the possibility that she needs to be heading towards the Kagutsuchi Museum to meet up with somebody there.

"_**Was this timeline version of me supposed to meet up with somebody in the Kagutsuchi Museum?.. I guess it might be an NOL contact if that's the case.**_" Makoto thought as that was the only possibility in her mind as she looked out to see the sun slowly rising at that moment. '_**It's getting brighter and I am wondering if I should even go out right now... I mean what if I am screwing the timeline with what I am doing right now?**_' Makoto wondered as that was not all that was in her mind.

There was also the fact that Hazama is probably looking for her and Jin and he was not trying to hide his hostility for her. Could it be that this Hazama is different from the bastard she knows? And he had mentioned Colonel Relius Clover, someone famed in the NOL for being a loner and as a result, not many people knowing about him. Hell even information him is scarce as a result. And he's showing interest in her, she cannot but feel creeped out by that.

'_**What should I even do?... I need to get back to my timeline if this isn't where I am supposed to be... but that will definitely require me to mess with this timeline in the process... god **__**what should I even do?**_' Makoto wondered as this was what she considered to be a part of a problem in her current series of problems that are piling up. "_**Maybe if I at least take a small rest then I can reset my mind and hopefully come up with something...**_"

Soon, she felt the exhaustion from fighting her life and trying to comprehend with her mind that she somehow time traveled into a different timeline altogether pile up all of the sudden as she settled herself into the Futon provided into her. As she closed her eyes, she finally felt the exhaustion take over her completely. The warm futon surrounding her body and the effects of the hot spring water aided in her rest as she only had one thing in her mind...

* * *

**...What should she be doing...**

* * *

As soon as slumber came to her, Makoto found herself relieving yet another dream. This time however, instead of trying to fight against it, she decides that the best thing she should do is actually accept what is happening to her and pay attention to what is going on in this dream. Maybe if she did so, she can figure out a solution to her current predicament and maybe move one step closer to her inconsistent memories.

The first thing she saw was a marble counter top as she was resting her head, sighing in defeat as she felt a massive wave of relief hit her. "_**AHHH...Finals are finally over...**_" Makoto mumbled as she sighed in defeat. Clearly this was the final exam she would ever take and she was simply glad the torture given to her is finally over. "_**Yup... they sure are.**_" A voice, belonging to the mystery man, said as he soon took a seat next to her. His face was starting to become a bit more clear, this time allowing her to see that one of his eyes was blind with the completely blank Iris on the right.

"_**How do you even take an exam with half your vision... you should be classified legally as half blind with your condition.**_" The dream Makoto mumbled as the man chuckled hearing that sentence. "_**Just close the blind eye while taking the exam and you are all good. Besides I still have one good eye so by that definition, it also means that I am can half see as well... so would that mean I have perfect 10/20 vision?**_" The man said as Makoto scratched her head at that comment.

"_**You need to work on your humor sir.**_" Makoto said as she bonked the man in the head. "_**And you need to hope that your results are enough for you to get into intelligence.**_" The man retorted as Makoto scratched her head at that comment. "_**Easy enough for you to say, You're not going to be joining the NOL after this.**_" Makoto commented as the man sat down on his chair and sighed a little. "_**I guess you are still feeling a little bit down about me not joining the NOL huh...**_" The man replied as Makoto thought about her next choice of words before speaking them.

"_**Do you think we can even maintain a long distance relationship once we graduate?**_" Makoto questioned as the man rested his head on top of hers. "_**You worried we can't do so?**_" The man questioned as Makoto shuffled on her seat a little bit. "_**It's just... when we graduate, everyone's going to be doing their own thing and we won't be able to meet each other as often as we do now. As much as I complain about studies... this is probably going to be the last time we can spend time like this, just relaxing and being ourselves you know.**_" Makoto said, her hand gently holding onto the man's own hand

"_**Once we separate... The NOL and it's vast systems will take over. Noel will probably get that desk job she's looking for but she's going to be swamped with work. Tsubaki's going to try and enlist to work as Jin's secretary and I am going to be working with intelligence under a man called Hazama who I heard is a troll. I don't even know what Mai's planning to do in all of this and Hunter is a wild card at this point.**_" Makoto said, trying to express her worries to this one person she trusted as this all played deep in her subconscious, the words she spoke that day coming true in some ways.

"_**Then what about our current relationship? Are you worried that we won't be able to find the time to spend with each other because we would be busy with life?**_" The man asked as Makoto simply nodded her head. "_**I want to to keep our relationship going... but I have to be realistic about our relationship and I am just worried that we won't last...**_" Makoto finished, her hand holding onto the man's with pure worry plastered on her face.

"_**If that's the case... we should break up if we are being realistic.**_" The man said as Makoto simply nodded her head at his sentence. But without warning, the man suddenly hugged her from behind, spooning her in the process. "_**But I don't ever want to break up with you. Even if it would become difficult to meet up with your job and my lack of technology... I believe we can still find a way for us to stay together regardless of distance.**_" The man said as Makoto smiled warmly at his words, feeling hopeful in the process.

"_**You know... when you say stuff like that, you've got to uphold them you know.**_" Makoto said as the man simply patted her in the head as the fog continued to dissipate on the man, revealing more of his white hair to her as a name was beginning to throb in her mind. A name that she should know in the first place yet at the same time doesn't know. "_**Let's find a way to do that alright Makoto? Together.**_" The man said as Makoto smiled warmly at his words.

* * *

_**...Of course...together ****...**_

* * *

As soon as her dream ended, Makoto slowly rose from her bed, wiping away a couple of tears that have emerged from her eyes. Why was she crying in bed? That is so not like her to do so. "_**Why...Why do I feel so sad right now?... I feel like... I really have forgotten something...Something truly important.**_" Makoto said out loud to herself as she began to think about what has happened to her life based on that memory.

This person... This person that said was going to be with her, not only doesn't show up for most of her life after the academy but also doesn't even try to contact her in some way. She wanted to be so pissed, to be angry with this person who said that they loved her... yet at the same time she couldn't even find it in her heart to do so. As if the thought of saying those things hurt more than anything. Just who is this person and why can't she even remember their name in the first place?

From accidentally ending up in a timeline that is not hers based on the fact that events don't match up with the events she knows happened. To her friends either becoming too busy to meet up and feeling her bonds with them stretching in the process. To a mystery man she cannot seem to remember the name of... that brought her a sense of warmth she had longed for the longest time. Just what is going on and why is she being given this whole mess to deal with?..

Her hand soon reached out for the necklace that was dangling on her neck. Just why does wearing this necklace bring her so much calm in the first place? Was it a gift from the man in her dreams? If so when did she even receive such a gift in the first place? She never remembered the day that she was given such a necklace nor does she recall for how long she's had it for. But all she knew was that she didn't want to part with this necklace at all, not in this world that she is not familiar with even though she doesn't even understand the significance of the necklace she is wearing.

"_**I must find a way back home... back to my own timeline.**_" Makoto said to herself as she heard a knock on the door. "**Miss Nanaya! I am planning to show Mr Jin around Ronin-Gai for a while, Do you want to come along with us?**" Bang asked as Makoto thought about his request before shaking her head, picking up the disc in her possession. "**I can't right now Mr Bang, I've got a sudden request that I need to take right now. I promise to meet up with you and Jin a few hours later.**" Makoto said as she waited for Bang's response.

"**If that's the case, you can use the yukata provided. We're still mending your outfit and will only be ready for you when you get back.**" Bang said as Makoto knew it would be dangerous to wear her normal outfit in the first place, for fear that the NOL would recognize her immediately since they would be looking for both her and Jin with the stunt they pulled. "**Thank you so much Bang. I hope you don't mind if it comes back a bit torn.**" Makoto apologized ahead as Bang gave a hearty laugh behind the door.

"**Do not worry about such trivial things, Just leave things to me to worry about, I promise to do my best to take care of Jin while you are gone.**" Bang said as Makoto soon heard the footsteps of the ninja go distant as she took a deep breath and picked up the note and the disc, realizing that her yukata had no pockets as she looked at her tail. Reluctantly she shoved the disc into her tail, moaning in discomfort as shoving things into her tail was not the best idea at all.

'_**I guess I better remember to brush my tail later on. Besides making sure to get a drink on the way out.**_' Makoto thought as she stretched her arms a bit before grabbing her cross tonfas and dangling them by the side of her hips and wearing a pair of tabi. At least the Yukata was loose enough for her to toss a few punches with as she tapped her feet on the floor before jabbing the air a few times. She then carefully kept the necklace in between her breasts as there was only one thing in her mind at that moment...

* * *

**...Time to get to work...**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING!? Man, half a year has passed and I didn't think we would expect that at all. Honestly I feel that sometimes 12 months is way too short in a year. Regardless, I don't mind it, it just means if we have terrible year, it doesn't take too long for it to end. Just don't mind this random thought I have. Classes are winding down for the semester and I wish to take a break for a while. Thus why I am posting this chapter earlier for you guys to see.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!? WHAT WILL MAKOTO DISCOVER WHEN SHE HEADS TOWARDS THE KAGUTSUCHI MUSUEM!? WHAT OTHER SECRETS AWAIT HER IN THIS TIMELINE THAT IS NOT HERS AND JUST WHAT KIND OF FATE AWAITS MAKOTO NANAYA AT THIS POINT!? Well tune in and find out what happens next.**


	5. Canon 4: Pre-Historic Soul Searching

( A New Canon and our lovable Squirrel girl makes her way to the Kagutsuchi Museum for answers. Let us see where that leads her now.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 4

The Kagutsuchi Museum... what some critics call one of the most important locations to visit, is in actual reality, a place that nobody, not even the locals bother to visit. Maybe it was due to how dry and dull it looked or how it was a museum and people were becoming less and less interested in viewing things when they can do so from the comfort of their phone. Regardless, Makoto Nanaya could clearly see how this place could be the potential location for a meeting with whoever the note was written for.

'_**Still... what on earth could Gnuuu even mean in the first place?**_' Makoto thought as she was giving it much thought. Her suspicion was that it was a password she needed to say but what if she was simply presuming what it was and she says it wrong. Checking on the Obi tied around her waist, Makoto wondered if she was going to be ready for whatever was going to be tossed in front of her. '_**Here I am... going to a museum and going to try and talk to someone I don't even know... just to find a way back to my time.**_'

Makoto at this point was wondering if this was even reality at this point, if she was really in fact, drunk as all hell back in a cauldron of all places. But the more she pinched herself, the more she realized that she was really living in reality. Scratching her head in frustration, she slowly made her way towards the museum, holding onto her cross tonfas carefully as she didn't want them to slip off her person and she was unprepared.

Now that she thought about it... Even though she didn't really need them, They came in handy from time to time in fights where she could have easily had more trouble if she didn't have a way to redirect the power coming from her fists into something more focused. Besides that, using them just felt right to her for some reason as she walked up the steps and into the museum itself, greeted to the sight of a giant banner advertising the newly constructed ancient wonders exhibit.

'_**Ancient wonders... I wonder what that could even mean?**_' Makoto wondered as she realized she doesn't even know who or what she is supposed to be looking for. How was she going to give the disc if she didn't know who to give it to. She didn't exactly have god like intellect and knew who she was supposed to meet with, for all she could even care, She could be meeting with some random strangers from Otsu.

'_**I guess I should walk around the exhibit for a little while and keep my eyes peeled for something odd...**_' Makoto thought as she walked up to the cashier and got her ticket into said exhibit, grumbling a bit when she realized how much they were charging for the tickets. '_**come on now... 1000 blaybloo for just a single ticket?.. no wonder so many people don't even know this place exists, this place rips your money off harder than an Otsunian trying to pawn off his stuff to you.**_' Makoto secretly thought as her eyes shot daggers towards the man who was unfortunate enough to charge her for her ticket.

'_**Might as well make sure I take my time to look around this exhibit and see what it is all about. I mean if you are going to have the name ancient wonders, you better live up to that word.**_' With those words in her mind, Makoto couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed by what she was looking at. All she was seeing so far was recreations of famous wonders of the world that were lost when the world was engulfed by seithr and thus a whole century of history along with it.

Then her interest began to grow even more when she noticed ancient armor from a time that she didn't even recognize and also weapons that she immediately recognized as when the world was nearly consumed by the Black Beast during the dark war, these ancient weapons were brought back as a result. Seeing them in a more ancient and rusting form was intriguing to her as it went to show her that history does have a weird way of repeating itself.

'_**So far I am slightly impressed... I just hope that the last exhibit isn't a dud**_.' Makoto hoped as she paid good money for this, money that could have gone towards either paying for a good bottle of wine or her upcoming rent. As she turned the corner, she couldn't help but take a deep breath as her eyes witnessed a gigantic skeletal recreation of a creature she has only seen in movies... a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

'_**Oh my god... I am already getting a tingly feeling at my underparts for something that is already dead... someone pinch me please.**_' Makoto thought as she simply pinched herself in the cheeks to snap her out of her wonder. As soon as she did, her eyes were immediately drawn to what was gigantic red figure as she immediately recognized who that was and took cover behind one of the exhibits to quickly try and compose herself.

'_**Holy shit... that's the **__**R**__**ed **__**D**__**evil, Iron Tager! What's a big guy like him even doing in a boring place like this!?**_' Makoto thought as the Red Devil's reputation is well known. A member of Sector Seven and one who works directly with one of their chief scientists, he is a dangerous man to face off against due to the sheer power his fists pack, especially if he managed to grab you. He is also rumored to have mastery over lightning, something considered difficult in the first place.

'_**Wait a minute...am I supposed to meet up with Iron Tager of all people!? Woah this is way too much if that's the case!'**_ Makoto panicked as she had hoped she was meeting with some normal person from either the NOL or Sector Seven. Meeting the Red Devil was the worst possible outcome as if she pissed him off in some way, she knew that her head was going to be on the chopping block and none of the punching power in the world would be enough to stop such a man.

'_**Calm down Makoto... All you got to do is not panic...Not panic.**_' Makoto thought as she began to take in a couple of breathing exercises to calm herself down. "**Ummm...Are you having a panic attack Miss?**" A voice calmly asked as she looked at the direction of the voice and her face immediately paled as she realized that the Red Devil had discovered where she was at and now had his entire attention focused onto her as she quickly cleared her throat before casually leaning herself onto a wall, trying to be suave.

"**Why no Mister... I am just Uhhh...Admiring the fossils you know... History sure has a way of making things interesting Hehehehe.**" Makoto said as she cannot help but give herself a face palm for her choice of words, reminding her of the Mutsuki who shall not be named and his lame pick up lines. "**I see.. judging by your outfit, I am guessing that you come from Ronin-Gai?**" Tager asked as Makoto just decided to go with the flow at that point.

* * *

Makoto: **Why yes! I am actually here on holiday right now from Shinatsu!**

Tager: **Shinatsu huh... that is interesting to know. But what brings you here of all places?**

Makoto: **Oh you know! I heard that this Museum was going to put on display a couple of Fossils** **from the prehistoric age... and comparing you to such things, you look tiny in comparison.**

Tager: **So...You like fossils then?**

Makoto: **Yeah! it's just... you know, I was hoping that they were going to have more well defined... Gnu bones.**

* * *

As soon as Makoto gave the code, she cannot help but notice the polite face from the Red Devil immediately turn into a serious one as she tried to play it dumb. "**Hehehe! You know! Like word pun****s****! Gnu bones... GOOD BONES!**" Makoto said louder, trying to play dumb only to immediately dodge for her life when Tager tried to grab her with his massive hands. "**WHAT THE HECK MAN!? WHAT DID I DO WRONG!?**" Makoto yelled as Tager immediately focused his gaze into a fighting stance and Makoto at that moment nearly shat herself.

"**I have found a suspicious girl, I am going to subdue her and bring her in for questioning.**" Tager said as Makoto couldn't help but feel offended by such a statement. "**HEY! I AM NOT SUSPICIOUS! OKAY MAYBE A LITTLE SINCE I KNOW THE CODE BUT I AM NOT SUSPICIOUS!**" Makoto yelled as Tager didn't waste any time trying to subdue her as his lumbering size hid a sudden burst of speed as Makoto did not expect to get tackled hard into a wall as she noticed sparks coming off her body in the process.

"**Oh shi...**" Before Makoto could even finish swearing, Tager immediately began to pull her in as this was his trademark magnetism, powerful enough to pull people around like a ragdoll as she raised her arm to block the Red Devil's powerful punch right at her abdomen. "**Hey man! Let's try to talk things out!**" Makoto said, hoping that diplomacy was still a possible option as she really did not want to get into a 1v1 confrontation with someone who is clearly going to rip her to shreds.

"**I can't, you know too much. For all I know, you may actually be an intelligence officer for the NOL trying to get information from Sector Seven.**" Tager deduced as Makoto couldn't blame him for his train of thought as that would be the same thing she would be thinking at that same moment. "**Then... You leave me no choice... and I just want to say, I AM SORRY!**" Makoto yelled as she retaliated with a punch of her own, pushing the Big Red Man quite a distance as he was quite surprised by the punching power of the woman in front of him.

'**A drive? I would like to say it is... but it also could be her own naturally born strength.**' Tager thought as Makoto quickly equipped the Cross Tonfas at her waist as assumed a fighting stance. "**I got a lot of questions to ask you... But if I want to do that I've got to fight for my own life!**" Makoto yelled, realizing fighting was her only option as she immediately ran towards him, splitting herself into three versions of herself to hopefully cause some doubt in the veteran on who he should hit.

However he was not the Red Devil for nothing as he gathered energy into his gauntlets and slammed the ground, causing a crackling of thunder to strike all of the copies and forcing Makoto to guard in the process as static returned to her body in the process. As soon as she noticed the static, Makoto steeled herself as Tager prepared to charge once again, suddenly pulling Makoto who was quite a distance away from him closer as he charged right towards Makoto with force.

'_**God! That magnetism and lighting are sure a pain! No wonder he's called the Red Devil! He really fights as if he is the Devil himself!**_' Makoto thought as she realized now wasn't the time for her to be showering her opponent with praise, she had to fight for her life and hopefully not get killed in the process. She didn't want to die in a world she wasn't familiar with and with memories of a person she barely remembers yet for some reason, hold an important significance in her heart.

'_**If I am fighting the Devil... THEN I NEED TO FIGHT LIKE A DEVIL MYSELF!**_' With those thoughts raging in her mind, Makoto immediately raised her fist to deliver a Haymaker punch right into the Jaw of the charging Red Devil, causing him to recoil as she began to deliver a series of quick and fast jabs, circling around Tager to ensure he cannot use his massive arms to grab her in any way, sticking close in the process.

'**This woman's punching power is incredible... I must do something to restrict it.**' Tager thought calmly as while Makoto was easily exerting her pressure over the giant man, Tager was used to fighting fast opponents like her. All he needed to do was simply keep his calm and allow his opponent to exhaust themselves trying to fight him in the process as he only blocked blows that would either cause him to stagger or crumble.

Makoto swung her fists right for Tager's knees, hoping to cause him to buckle to his massive weight but opponents must have targeted those very same spots in the first place because Tager was ready for her, easily parrying her attempts with his massive gauntlets. When that plan wasn't working, Makoto immediately shifted her focus on his arms instead, hoping that she would be able to disable them so that Tager couldn't use his Magnetism to their fullest potential.

But with every tactic that Makoto pulled out, Tager was familiar with as he raised his gauntlets up, causing her fists to meet pure metal as the cross tonfas dealt little against such beefy armor. Makoto knew she needed to do some damage otherwise she's going to get knocked out at this rate. Thus she began to shift her focus on mixing things up by combining sweeps with her strikes, something she rarely does herself as she preferred swinging with her fists.

Tager himself was rather impressed by his opponent's ability to try and adapt against what is presented in front of her. This meant that he needed to adapt as well as without warning, he raised his hand to catch one of Makoto's fists as she found herself getting tossed into the air as before she could even react, Tager immediately pulled her in, using what looked like a vacuum function on his gauntlets to suck her back into his hands, clamping down hard on her as he easily slammed her to the ground with force, causing her to cough blood as she immediately pulled some distance between her and Tager, coughing even more blood in the process heavily.

'_**God...that was just one grab? Oh god my insides...**_' Makoto thought as her Obi was nearly undone in the process as while the Yukata held on, she was now fearing for the fact that if she suffered another devastating grab like that, she may not even last for much longer as she wondered what she could do against such a big guy in the first place to hopefully displace him enough to land a couple of crucial blows to knock him unbalanced.

Tager however was not going to give her that time to think as he immediately lunged with his gauntlets ready to grab her once again. Now forced on the defensive, Makoto immediately ducked low to dodge the grab, her ribs aching in the process as she felt like they were about to snap into two from the slam they suffered from. Soon Makoto forced herself to move as much as she could, knowing that she has to do some thing drastic to catch him off guard.

It was then it came into her mind, a move she had been spending the past few years to perfect. She didn't know how it was going to turn out but if she wanted to live, she needed to pull it out now. Creating more distance once again, Tager got ready to charge at her as Makoto began to motion with her hands, creating a swaying motion as Tager began to move at a rapid pace. It was at this moment that Makoto had been waiting for as he could not brake himself even if he wanted to as she relaxed her right arm and allowed the motion to sway, creating a smooth circular spark that soon manifested itself as a giant ball of energy.

'**A pure seithr ball?!**' Tager thought as he couldn't stop himself in the process, slamming himself right into the ball in the process as Makoto spun her right tonfa a singular spin as she charged her fist with pure seithr. This intrigued Tager in the process as he has heard of Ars magus aptitude but directly manipulating seithr to a physical form is an interesting feat on by itself as Makoto slammed her fist right onto the ball, causing Tager to get shot into a museum piece in the process as Makoto took a deep breath from that.

'_**I...I did it! I finally did it!**_' Makoto thought as she realized what she had just done. For so long she had been working on this singular technique and while she still is working on the kinks, being able to launch a big ball of seithr like she just did was just incredible. Even though she has a below average ars magus level, able to only manifest a barrier to protect herself, She's always had this ability to handle higher levels of Seithr for a bit longer before she needed to use a filter to not kill herself with seithr poisoning.

But by at least using some of her limited ars magus knowledge to pull in Seithr, she's able to make manifest a ball of seithr and fire it out like a powerful cannon and the results have shown for themselves. She should be able to do this a couple more times but unless she strikes the ball, she won't be able to send it flying like the way she just did, but that doesn't mean she can't use the Ball in other ways as she used the space given to catch her breath.

"**Impressive... But I won't let you repeat your success once again.**" Tager said as he began to use the powerful vacuum in his gauntlets to bring Makoto closer as she was unable to grab anything to stay still, walking as he did so to create even less space for the squirrel girl to maneuver in as his hands loomed closer for another chance to grab her. This time though, Makoto ducked low, tripping the Red Devil a bit in the process as he was quick to recover his footing in the process.

As soon as he did though, Makoto immediately made the ball of Seithr appear right in front of his face, causing him to get hit as he got lifted into the air by it, catching Makoto a bit off guard as she realized this was her chance and began to gather energy into her fist. Tager was able to recover however but was soon forced to guard her attack as she came launching at him, her fist much stronger than normal as the metal at his gauntlets vibrated greatly.

"_**CORONA UPPER!**_" Makoto yelled as she charged up another punch, this time coming from her left arm as like lighting, it shot itself right at Tager, breaking the giant's guard as he was hit square in the face from the move. "_**AND LIGHTNING ARROW!**_" Makoto continued as she landed on the ground softly, her eyes focused on Tager as he stood up, rubbing his face from where she struck and nodding his head, understanding the power that laid in the squirrel beastkin's fists.

"**It appears that I must subdue you even quicker before things get too messy. I was hoping to not use excessive force but I have no choice.**" Tager said as Makoto couldn't help but be shocked by those words. '_**Excessive force?! Dude nearly killed me with that one slam!? Don't tell me he actually has something even more painful than one of those!?**_' Makoto thought in horror as Tager's gauntlets released a massive amount of air as she realized he was charging up for an astral heat as she could feel the gauntlets begin to gather a massive amount of seithr.

'_**Oi... He can't be serious now... I'm just one little girl and he wants to man handle me already!?**_' Makoto thought in horror as her cool was starting to break a little. She knew very well that if he manages to grab her with that move, she might not even live to the next life as desperation kicked in and Makoto began to gather energy into her fist, knowing that charging against a man like that is too dangerous and she needed to knock him back should he attempt to grab her out of nowhere.

'_**No choice, Big Bang Smash to keep him at...**_' Before she could finish her train of thought, the area around her turned black as suddenly the vacuums in Tager's gauntlets kicked in, as she felt herself getting pulled in even faster than normal as her footing was lost in the process, sending her flying into the air as she could see Tager raise his hand in the air, ready to catch her in the process. At that moment, she knew she had to pull the trigger and punch him out of it otherwise she would become a squirrel pancake.

But she had no time to charge a fully charged up power punch, all the time she had was for a singular small and tiny level 1 punch, meaning it would have to near point blank. But thinking about that was not going to save her at that moment, she had to just do it as she drew closer into Tager's hands. The Red Devil took no pleasure in doing something like this but he knew when not to take chances and while his opponent was just a mere squirrel girl with massive punching power, He knew better than underestimate her, especially since she manipulated seithr into a ball.

"_**BIG BANG SMASH!**_" As soon as Tager heard those words, suddenly his gauntlets disengaged and lost all vacuum functions, as if they were manually overridden from his control as Makoto came flying towards him in the air. Shock soon dawned over Tager as he didn't have time to block as Makoto threw her punch right into the Red Devil's face and an astral fist emerged from it, delivering a double blow right onto the big red man and sending him crashing right into an exhibit display, nearly destroying it thanks to his massive size as Makoto was too high on adrenaline to realize what had happened.

'_**He's down! Now's my chance!**_' Makoto thought as she didn't hesitate to run herself right towards Tager's face and prepared herself to beat him down. But before she could do so, a loud static noise brought her back to reality. "**Cut it out the both of you! That's enough dammit!**" A loud annoyed voice said as Makoto nearly lost her footing, barely breaking as her obi came undone at that point, forcing her to quickly grab it before she accidentally flashed the Red Devil her boobs.

"**WOAH! What on Earth!? Who's there!**" Makoto yelled, desperately tying the Obi back as Tager got back to his feet, still assuming a battle stance as he tried to relax himself. "**Are you sure you want me to stand down professor?**" Tager asked as Makoto looked at him confused. "**Wait... professor?**" Makoto asked in her confusion as the loud static came out again. "**Don't think about it Tager, just do as I say for now.**" The voice, now calming a bit more said as Tager did so. "**Yes Professor Kokonoe.**"

The Moment Makoto heard the name Professor Kokonoe, she nearly pissed herself on the spot. As if the Red Devil wasn't enough, here she was dealing with the elusive Professor Kokonoe of all people. '_**This day just keeps on getting better...and better...and better...**_' Makoto thought as she decided to double check if this was truly Professor Kokonoe speaking to her. "**Say... are you the one that people calls "The Bitch" Kokonoe?**" Makoto asked as she immediately became worried that she would be turned into a squirrel sandwich for that comment.

"**Yes, I am the bitch herself. Now who the hell are you?**" Kokonoe asked in a non-chalant uninterested manner, which made it even more terrifying for Makoto as that made it harder to tell if Kokonoe was pissed or even more pissed as she stood straight and calmed herself repeatedly with breathing exercises before continuing. "**Lieutenant Makoto Nanaya of NOL intelligence... I've got my ID to prove who I am...**" Makoto said, knowing she was taking a massive risk revealing she's NOL but not saying she's NOL would make things even worse.

Then silence, simply silence greeted Makoto as she stared at Tager in the eyes, her heart beating rapidly as she waited for an answer from the daughter of the great sage Nine herself. The hero known for inventing ars magus and stopping the Black Beast almost 100 years ago, earning her the title as one of the six heroes of the Dark war. "**Lieutenant Nanaya, can you please give me the code once again?**" Kokonoe asked as Tager and Makoto were caught off guard by this.

* * *

Tager: **Are you serious about telling her...**

Kokonoe: **Why don't you leave it to me to think of the big brain stuff and trust me with this... Let me ask you again Lieutenant Nanaya. The password please.**

Makoto:**...Gnuu?**

Kokonoe: **Wrong... ****It's ****Baaa**

Makoto:**...If I can be honest...I don't really know what's going on myself. I come from another timeline, a timeline where this is my first time ever meeting you or the Red Devil himself. So... I don't really know much in the first place.**

* * *

The moment Tager and Kokonoe heard timelines, their attention immediately changed drastically as Makoto left a bit of a pause in her statement, knowing how hard it must be to believe such a statement, especially from people of science that Sector Seven are. "**Lieutenant Nanaya, Tell me the date right now.**" Kokonoe urged as Makoto was caught slightly off guard by that as she paused for a bit before giving her answer.

"**31st December 2199...**" Makoto said as she had been so busy she had forgotten to check the calender on her phone when she arrived to this new timeline, so she simply said the date that she last saw, which was 31st December 2199. More silence greeted her as she decided to take the initiative in this conversation. "**So ummm... Does Sector Seven know of a way I can return back to my own timeline? I know I am not supposed to be here and there are a couple of questions I need answered myself...**" Makoto asked as more silence greeted her as Tager looked at her.

"**Sorry Lieutenant, can't do. Sector Seven doesn't have a time machine to send you back to your proper timeline...**" Kokonoe explained as Makoto couldn't help but despair a bit hearing that, knowing that her chances of heading back home are slowly evaporating in front of her eyes. "**Though...I can say that if you head towards the Cauldron here in Kagutsuchi, you might be able to find a way back from there.**" Kokonoe continued, catching Makoto by surprise as Tager turned his back towards the squirrel beastkin.

"**0457291.**" Tager said as Makoto heard those numbers and realized that they were a code for her to enter. "**When you return back to your own timeline... Please contact that timeline's versions of us and get into contact with us immediately about any information that you may have about this event... Don't tell them where you got it Got it.**" Kokonoe said as Makoto finished writing the codes down a piece of paper before lifting her head up, realizing that both her and Tager were gone, leaving her with even more questions and a singular clue towards the answer she may be seeking.

"_**The Cauldron in Kagutsuchi huh...**_" Makoto muttered as she looked at the code written hastily by her. While it's true that she could try to use the Cauldron in Kagutsuchi to try and send herself back to her proper timeline... How does she even use such a thing in the first place? "_**Noel... Tsubaki...**_" Makoto muttered under her breath as she held her head a bit, a pain ringing throughout her very psyche as she wondered why her brain was aching in pain as she spoke those very names.

Her eyes soon opened to a sight of a figure standing in front of her. A one armed man whose white hair flowed free like the wind itself as a blank face containing a singular yellow left eye and a blank white eye stared back at her. She felt like she should know someone like this, this identity was so recognizable and yet she couldn't. "_**JUST WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!**_" Makoto yelled as she held her head in pain, staring at the figure in front of her as she continued to remain on her knees in the now empty dinosaur exhibit. As she does so, a figure standing on top of the head of the Tyrannosaurus Rex stared at her with continued interest.

"**So what do you think princess? She piquing your interest as we speak?**" Gil said as Rachel calmly sipped her tea as she was not familiar with the scene in front of her. "**I have rescued this squirrel with moxie a few times now... but this is the first time I have seen her under this much duress.**" Rachel said as a black cat like figure became a small stool for her to sit upon. "**Are you talking about how different this Makoto Nanaya is from the other Makoto Nanaya's you have had to save?**" Nago questioned as Rachel nodded as she had to admit, this was quite a drastic change indeed.

"**This new timeline has brought in some interesting changes that we observers have never seen before... the question now is... just what is the force that is causing such drastic changes to the timeline as we speak?**" Rachel questioned to herself as Makoto stood up from her tirade, having managed to calm herself as she knew there was no point standing around this empty museum for much longer.

"**I need to get back to Ronin-Gai and think about what I had just heard... Or maybe I should just try heading back without even thinking at this point.**" Makoto said to herself as her hand reached out for the pendant she wore and began to gently caress it. It felt so calming when she did as she began to take her steps towards Ronin-Gai slowly, a mental image of the white haired man's back standing in front of her, taunting her to remember as she struggled to do so as her quest to return back home simply continued...

* * *

**...As Rachel simply sat from her spot, observing very carefully what is happening in front of her...**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING!? I hope you all are enjoying the pacing of the story so far. I hope that it's not too fast for you all reading right now. If not, then I hope that you all continue to enjoy the pace of the story being given to you. Besides that, I am currently on holiday right now thanks to my university's semester ending and having some spare time to relax and think about the next few chapters that have to be written for this story, all so I can give you guys quality content at the end of the day.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!? HOW IS MAKOTO NANAYA GOING TO GET BACK HOME!? JUST HOW WILL SHE NEED TO USE THE CAULDRON AT KAGUTSUCHI TO RETURN BACK HOME!? AND JUST WHAT WILL RACHEL ALUCARD THINK OF THE SITUATION BEING PRESENTED IN FRONT OF HER!? Well... read on if you dare and keep your eyes out for when the next chapter is posted.**


	6. Canon 5: Fulfilling One's Desires

( A New Canon has arrived, What is planned for Makoto Nanaya now? Let us find out at this very moment.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 5

Makoto was running... That was all she could do. Here she was, in a world she had no clue about, Making her way towards the Kagutsuchi Cauldron after finding out that this world's Jin Kisaragi went off on his own and not even Bang knew the reason why he did so. But instead of making the choice to go after him and potentially lose the trail, she decided that it was better to make her way towards the NOL Kagutsuchi headquarters to find a way back home. Just how did she come to this decision?..

* * *

**We have to rewind the clock a bit, to when Makoto was on her way from the Kagutsuchi Musuem.**

* * *

**FLASHBACK**

**MAKOTO POV**

* * *

The Cauldron in Kagutsuchi... I had never thought that I could use a cauldron of all things to return back to my time. I mean that is a strong possibility however I don't even know how to activate one, let alone how to use it to head back to my time. Hell unless I find an expert on Cauldrons, I may have to start getting used to living life here and that is not a prospect I relish at all. At the very least, I should probably collect my things back at Ronin-Gai and go and see how Jin's doing under Bang's care.

Jin... I mean... This isn't my version of Jin... yet at the same time I cannot help but want to take care of him. I really can't explain it but I can't help but feel bad if this world's Tsubaki heard that Jin died... just like my Noel had to deal with her Hunter... I don't even know what's going on in the first place. There's so many questions ringing through my mind and even less answers that are currently present in front of me. Just what am I going to do...

"**MAKOTO DONO! MAKOTO DONO!**" A loud voice screamed as I realized that voice belonged to Bang Shishigami. '_**Huh? Just what happened while I was away?' **_I thought as I walked towards the direction of Bang's voice, curious to see what he wanted to talk to me about as I could see panic plastered on his face as he clearly looked like he was trying to find me for the longest time. "**MAKOTO DONO! THERE YOU ARE! SOMETHING TERRIBLE HAS HAPPENED!**" Bang screamed as I had to close my ears in surprise.

"**OW!...OK! I heard you the first time! Just tell me what on earth happened in a softer voice please!**" I yelled back, making Bang hold his ear as he cleared his throat from all of the screaming he did previously and looked back at me with serious eyes still plastered in panic. "**Your...Your friend... He gone amok!**" Bang said, making me want to slap myself in the face as I cannot believe he just said that. "**Gone amok? What on earth do you mean by that!**" I questioned, wanting a straighter answer as Bang luckily gave it to me.

"**While I took Mr Kisaragi around Ronin-Gai, one of my subordinates called me away for a bit to handle a small matter. I told Mr Kisaragi to wait for a bit before before I knew it, when I returned... he was gone!**" Bang explained as I rubbed my forehead even more, just getting annoyed by the situation being presented in front of me. "**Did you ask anybody where he went in the first place? Do you have any idea where he could have gone?**" I asked, trying to remain calm as Bang thought about it for a bit before something like a lightning bolt struck him.

"**I did remember a disciple of mine saying that Jin Kisaragi was in the company of a blond haired man wearing a half mask and purple coat and heading towards the higher levels... other than that, we don't know anything else.**" Bang confessed as I placed my head on my forehead. A man wearing a half mask and a purple coat... that sounds rather familiar. After giving it a bit of time to think, I suddenly realize who he was talking about.

'_**Colonel Relius Clover... the one who was mentioned in the report in regards to the 12**__**th**__** Prime Field Device... The one that resembled Noel in the picture... as well as a part of NOL command that nobody knows about.**_' I thought as I wonder about what I should even do right now. '_**To think that things have gone to shit... From me trying to figure out a way back home to finding out that Jin is currently in the company of a man who may potentially murder him... Just what am I going to even do in this situation.**_'

In front of me laid two choices... I could just chase after Jin and get him away from Relius Clover... Or I could head towards the NOL headquarters here in Kagutsuchi and try to see what is the fuzz around this cauldron and see if there is a way for me to activate it. Either way... it's either I choose to forsake Jin to hopefully get back home... Or make home my top priority. The choice being presented in front of me simply sucks right now as either way... it's making my decision harder than it needs to be.

'_**Dammit...I've got to find a way back home now and hope that this world's Jin is able to take care of himself right now.**_' Makoto thought as she looked at Bang in the eyes. "**Listen Bang. Can you go and find Jin for me... I need to go and settle some other matters right now.**" I explained to Bang calmly as he had a great smile plastered on his face. "**Why of course! If we manage to find him, I will make sure that you are informed in great haste!**" Bang said as I was about to head back towards the Kagutsuchi cauldron when I remembered something.

"**Say Bang, are my clothes done being patched up?**" I asked as Bang gave me a thumbs up. "**They are just in your room, fully repaired and waiting to be put on once again Miss Nanaya!**" Bang said as I couldn't help but run back towards his estate to get dressed in my battle attire. Not before I gave him a pat on the back to make him feel like he did a good job. As I got dressed back up to my normal clothes... a part of me wonders if I made the right decision in the first place... regardless, I have made my decision and I cannot back down from it now.

* * *

**...It's time to man up Makoto Nanaya!**

* * *

"_**Don't make me regret my decision to leave you to your own devices... Jin!**_" Makoto thought as her feet took her faster towards the NOL headquarters, her mind racing on what she's going to do once she's arrived at the cauldron. Wearing her Battle uniform once again, Makoto was feeling raring to go and find out what she needs to do to head back to her own timeline as she couldn't help but notice the lack of NOL personnel around the area.

'_**Is it me or is security really lax around here?**_' Makoto wondered as she knew that despite it being New Year's eve, there should be some guards around the headquarters to make sure nobody's going in and wrecking the place, especially if a person like Ragna the Bloodedge is busy walking around and wrecking NOL headquarters around the world like he is currently in her timeline. Regardless of what's happened, she should take advantage of the lack of security to sneak into the cauldron.

As soon as she entered the building as discreetly as she possibly could, Makoto couldn't help but look around feverishly for the elevator that would take her to the basement where the Cauldron was held. Usually the NOL builds secret elevators to hide the cauldron itself from easy access from the general public, and usually these elevators are kept only to higher level personnel to prevent information from leaking out.

Being from intelligence however, Makoto has made sure to note down all of the possible locations where the elevator could be. Unfortunately she couldn't help but worry if her information from another timeline would work for the timeline she is in currently. Regardless, she's got to find this elevator and make her way towards the cauldron now before things become worse and go beyond her control.

"**Makoto? Makoto is that you?!**" a familiar voice said as Makoto couldn't help but freeze up hearing that. '_**No...Not now... any other time but now...**_' Makoto thought as she slowly turned her head towards the direction of the voice as that voice had made her way towards where she was standing, her red hair flowing freely as Makoto stared at the red haired vixen in front of her. "**T-Tsubaki... is that you?..**" Makoto asked out loud as she locked eyes with the blue eyed heir of the Yayoi household, the first woman she has ever held a crush for as she couldn't help but become nervous in front of her.

"**What brings you here Makoto? I thought you were stationed in Shinatsu... And why do you look so exhausted?**" Tsubaki questioned as Makoto couldn't help but freeze up at the spot. Just what does she even say at this point? Tsubaki's caught her at the worst possible time and now she needs to lie to a version of one of her best friends. A light bulb then rung in her mind as she cleared her breath, trying to calm herself down from panicking too much.

"**I'm glad I found you Tsubaki! I've got something that I need to tell you about from command itself! They even gave me papers with the specific orders in them!**" Makoto said as she began to search around her body as she continued to think about what she is going to say to Tsubaki in the first place. '_**Think Think... what can I say right now that would get Tsubaki off my case... Orders to return back to the NOL... Maybe that will work but still...**_' Makoto thought as she knew she needed to keep lying to buy herself more time to come up with a credible excuse.

"**Oh man... where did I put it... Did I misplace it somewhere?**" Makoto said loudly, expressing fake frustration over losing precious orders from the NOL which should be enough to fool someone as innocent as Tsubaki. "**Huh? Is something the matter right now Makoto?**" Tsubaki questioned as Makoto immediately began to panic even more as she began to search herself even more before placing her hands onto Tsubaki's shoulders, looking at her with wide eyes.

"**Just Listen to me for a second Tsubaki! You need to head back to headquarters right now. Your life's in danger right now and you shouldn't be fighting right now.**" Makoto said, just only realizing that Tsubaki had donned her family's heirloom, one of the few remaining Izayoi's in the world right now and the one entrusted to the Yayoi family for decades. This told her that Tsubaki was heading somewhere and most likely heading towards her death... especially if she's heading towards the Cauldron like she is.

"**Did you come here on your own to surprise me Makoto? I have to admit, it's been a long while since we last met so seeing you here is a lovely surprise indeed.**" Tsubaki said as Makoto couldn't help but scratch her head hearing that. As much as she wants to meet with Noel and Tsubaki herself... she didn't want to meet under circumstances like this, especially with people who may look like her friends but aren't exactly her friends at the same time.

"**But... I'm sorry. I cannot leave right now, even if I was ordered by the NOL to... Not until I bring Jin back to the NOL myself. I've already sacrificed too much... used my family name to pull some strings and get myself into the Zero Squadron just for this moment.**" Tsubaki explained, alarming Makoto more of the contradictions being presented in front of... telling her clearly that this is not her timeline at all. "**Wait a Minute... you transferred to the Zero Squadron?..**" Makoto questioned as Tsubaki nodded.

"**Just long enough till I bring Jin back. Then I'll transfer back to the 4****th**** Thurmaturgist squadron straight away... The Zero Squadron provides one a lot of opportunities after all...**" Tsubaki explained, alarming Makoto more of what she is learning about this timeline as she couldn't help but bite her lip hearing that. All wrong.. This was all wrong... This was not how things happened. "**Then what about Noel then!? Is she in the 4****th**** Thurmaturgist squadron with you?**" Makoto questioned as Tsubaki looked at her confused.

"**Noel?.. I'm sorry Makoto but who is she?**" Tsubaki asked, understandably confused as Makoto couldn't help but bite her lip harder at that. "**What about Hunter Long?! Captain of the Vermillion Dragoons?**" Makoto asked as Tsubaki looked at her with concern plastered in her eyes as she placed her hand on Makoto's shoulder. "**I'm Sorry Makoto... I guess that you must be still dealing with Hunter's death yourself... After all he was your boyfriend.**" Tsubaki explained as Makoto couldn't take it anymore.

"**HUNTER WAS NOT MY BOYFRIEND! HE WAS NOEL'S! NOEL VERMILLION! DO YOU NOT KNOW WHO SHE IS!?**" Makoto screamed, tears flowing down her face as she felt like a stranger to one of her friends as Tsubaki couldn't help but panic when she saw Makoto began to tear up. "**Now Now Makoto, there's no need to cry right now. I am sure if we think things through we can come up with a rational explanation for things.**" Tsubaki said but before Makoto could even respond, another voice decided to chime in on that exact moment.

"**She's right you know... There's no point in overthinking things you know...**" A voice spoke, a voice that was all to familiar with Makoto as Tsubaki looked to see Captain Hazama approaching her and Makoto. "**Captain Hazama?**" Tsubaki quickly asked as Hazama nodded his head. "**In the flesh. I'm just here to let you know that Jin went that way. If you're quick enough, you can catch up to him.**" Hazama said as that alarmed Tsubaki but as soon as she looked at Makoto, she wondered what she should even do at this point, go after Jin or comfort Makoto.

"**You might want to hurry though... I think I also saw Ragna the Bloodedge also head the same way.**" The moment Tsubaki heard Hazama say that name, her senses were on full alert. "**Do you want to come with me Makoto? I would feel better if I knew you were by my side.**" Tsubaki asked as Makoto took a bit to answer her before shaking her head. "**I'll meet with you later... I need to ask Captain Hazama something... you go on ahead.**" Makoto said, wiping her tears away as Tsubaki simply looked at her friend and the green haired captain, feeling the tension in the room as she simply nodded her head and left the two alone as a palpable tension could be felt in the room itself.

The two stared at each other for a bit, the both of them not daring to say a word as their eyes darted to each other like lightning with malice. Hazama decided to be the first one to say something as he pulled out his knives and began to spin them in his hands. "**Tell me one thing first... Makoto Nanaya... Have you met up with Colonel Relius yet?**" Hazama asked as Makoto simply remained quiet, assuming a battle stance and keeping her focus on him as Hazama sighed.

* * *

Hazama:** I see... You know... when you said Noel Vermillion just a few moments ago... I nearly pissed myself. Everything I have been working hard for, undone... thanks to your smart ass.**

Makoto: **Really now... So you won't mind telling me if you're the one responsible for sending me to this timeline?**

Hazama:** Send you to this timeline?.. I see... that explains why things have gone out of whack... You're not exactly the Makoto Nanaya from this timeline huh...**

Makoto:** And so what if I am not huh... You're going to kill me regardless. Don't think I can't tell when we fought back at the pier...**

Hazama:** Of course I am going to murder you for your meddling ways... I just never expected the timeline to become this screwed... I can't be expected to believe that this is a possibility of the continuum shift.**

* * *

"**The hell you talking about right now...**" Makoto asked, venom present in her voice as Hazama couldn't help but grit his teeth hearing her demand for answers like that. "**Woah now... don't give me that tone you bitch... Thanks to your interfering ass, all of the plans I have had are now fucking screwed.**" Hazama replied with equal venom, no longer trying to be the nice guy he has always been pretending to be as Makoto steeled herself for anything.

"**I tried to be a nice guy... I tried to let Relius handle you... But you know what? I DON'T THINK I CAN WAIT FOR THAT LONG!**" Hazama yelled as he kicked Makoto but she managed to block in time, sliding on the ground and steeling herself for what the Captain has in plan for her as Hazama was annoyed by how resilient this Makoto was when every other Makoto Nanaya he has ever met became chicken shit the moment they were met by his killing aura... as if this version of her was not disturbed by him at all.

"**SO YOU KNOW WHAT... SCREW PLAYING NICE AND SCREW THIS TIMELINE. I AM GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU!**" Hazama screamed as he lunged for Makoto with knife in hand. As soon as Makoto saw this, Makoto immediately reached out for her Tonfas to guard but before a fight could even break out, a massive figure moved in between the two, acting as a massive wall as Makoto saw in front of her what was simply put, a giant wall of magenta metal standing between her and Hazama.

"**Now Now... Didn't I tell you that I was going to handle Miss Nanaya now?**" A voice, calm and focused spoke, alarming Makoto as Hazama was visibly annoyed by the appearance of this new person. "**Not now Relius... I am busy trying to clean up the mess that you said you were going to clean up yourself.**" Hazama replied coldly as Makoto peeked over the metal, allowing her to see a blond haired man wearing a golden opera mask that covered his eyes, a magenta coat, white gloves and pants.

'_**Is...Is that person really Relius Clover? The one I read about in the report with the 12**__**th**__** prime field device?**_' Makoto thought as the figure, now clearly known as Relius calmly walked towards Hazama and gently pried his knife away from his hands. "**I would highly recommend that you leave Miss Nanaya to me and go see the show downstairs. I am pretty sure it's approaching the finale as we speak.**" Relius said as he looked at Hazama who without even saying a word simply scoffed and took his knife back from Relius.

"**You're lucky this time you squirrel bitch. The next time I come back I better see her in a body bag.**" Hazama replied with venom as he walked away from the scene, alarming Makoto even more as she tried to chase after Hazama only to be stopped in her tracks by a massive claw in front of her. "**I would most recommend that you stay where you are right now Miss Nanaya... we have a lot to discuss after all...**" Relius calmly said as Makoto looked at where this massive claw came from as her eyes widened at what she had seen.

It was a mechanical being... but something felt off about it. It's big robotic eyes and fake yellow hair seemed almost natural as it wore what looked like to be a long magenta dress and cap as the being quickly vanished from where it stood to be right next Relius, arms placed on top of each other as she cannot help but feel something creepy about the mechanical being in front of her... as if it's actually a human being trying to speak to her as she clenched her fists tightly.

"**Now...before my friend had rudely interrupted our meeting. My name's Colonel Relius Clover... the pleasure's all mine Makoto Nanaya.**" Relius said, bowing a little as Makoto felt even more at an unease around his presence, despite the manners he was showing her at that moment, she couldn't help but feel that the person in front of her was just as dangerous as Captain Hazama... or maybe even more so as Relius noticed Makoto's alert and wary posture, almost akin to an animal being cornered by a predator.

'_**Something is not right about this guy... The way he's looking at me behind that mask of his... it's as if he's looking down on me... Just like... Just Like...**_' Makoto couldn't finish her train of thought, the scars of her past ringing in her mind as she clenched her head in pain, Intriguing Relius even more as his eyes continued to stare down Makoto's very being. "**I see... your soul has become far more "Robust" since we last met...**" Relius coldly said, alarming Makoto as she quickly assumed a fighting posture.

"**What the hell do you mean by my soul? Start talking right now.**" Makoto said, her eyes trying to stare back at the man who was doing the same to her. However his eyes remain obscured behind the mask he wore, forcing her eyes to dart a little bit to the left and right as he couldn't help but take notice at Makoto's caution. "**Intriguing... so you do come from a different world... that would explain why your soul right now is much sturdier than when we last met...**" Relius calmly said, ignoring the clear sign of danger he was in to approach her closer.

"**Look Colonel... I don't have time to waste with your bullshit. I am going to need you to step the fuck out of my way.**" Makoto retorted, standing her ground as Relius was soon at her face. "**Oh don't be so uncooperative right now. I am merely just taking observation to your soul's current state as we speak.**" Relius said, his hand slowly reaching out towards Makoto to touch her, forcing her to retaliate with a sudden punch that bruised Relius at his cheek as he calmly wiped the blood that came from it, as if it didn't faze him.

"**Like I said Colonel... I ain't got time for your bullshit...so if You are not going to step out of my way. Then I will make you do so!**" Makoto yelled, throwing herself into combat as Relius simply remained calm and used his hand to calmly deflect Makoto's wild punches as she threw haymaker after haymaker with the hopes that one of her punches will simply floor him in the process. Relius however was not interested in what she was doing, simply continuing to observe her as she couldn't help but feel annoyed by the way he was simply looking down at her.

"**HOW ABOUT THIS YOU SON OF A BITCH!**" Makoto Yelled as she created a ball of seithr and sent it flying towards Relius at high speed, her patience being pushed to their limits as Relius simply snapped his finger to order the mechanical being beside him to stop the ball of seithr coming towards him with ease, shocking Makoto as Relius began to rub his hand on his beard, intrigued as to the series of events that is current happening in front of him.

"**Ignis... We are to capture the subject alive... Her soul has advanced in a rate that has piqued even more of my interest.**" Relius said as the mechanical being known as Ignis simply nodded it's head to register it had heard his orders. Makoto couldn't help but grit her teeth but then felt a chill crawl down her spine as she shook her head several times to shake off that feeling she was getting. '_**No Makoto... you can't get scared of him now... not when your life depends on it... Not when this bastard's looking down on you!**_' Makoto thought as she prepared herself for the battle that was to come...

As she did so, observing from the high ground, Rachel Alucard couldn't help but slightly scowl at the turn of events that were presented in front of her as an observer. "**This is bad princess... Makoto Nanaya's met Relius Clover!**" Gil said in worry as she calmly grabbed the pink bat and began to stretch him several times to silence him as Nago himself continued to observe the situation. "**Isn't the two of them meeting usually considered a bad thing? Especially for the continuum shift?**" Nago asked as Rachel continued to look at the situation with intrigue.

"**Shouldn't we go down there and rescue her now princess? There is no telling what that man would do to her if he manages to subdue her.**" Nago continued, expressing his concern over the current situation but Rachel shook her head. "**Are you saying we are to forsake this Makoto Nanaya and observe another possibility instead?**" Nago questioned as Rachel finally released her grip of Gil, making the pink bat fly in pain as she shook her head.

"**Something inside tells me to continue observing this Makoto Nanaya to the very end... as if it tells me that if I do so, I may just discover the answer to a question that has been previously eluding me...**" Rachel said, alarming Nago and Gil as they looked at her with slight shock. "**You don't mean the Event Error?**" Nago replied. The Event Error... the one person who is responsible for the drastic changes to the timeline that Rachel had been observing for so long... and has yet to be discovered.

"**She might be the key to us finding the person called the Event Error and maybe our only hope in ensuring said Error is by our side at the end of the day...**" Rachel explained as Nago and Gil looked back at the scene of Makoto desperately fighting back against the mechanical doll Ignis. "**I cannot argue with your logic princess... But what happens if she ends up in Relius's hands?**" Gil asked as Rachel simply chose to remain quiet as she didn't want to think about what would happen next...

* * *

**...As curiosity began to loom over the Princess**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING AT THIS VERY MOMENT!? I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE BEEN ENJOYING THE STORY SO FAR?! And I have to say... I may have been struck by some inspiration bug because I feel like writing an extra chapter this month so if you notice an extra chapter come out this month, that would probably be why. I don't know why I feel this way, I just feel like I should do so, especially since this chapter's being published much earlier than normal so I feel like you guys deserve an extra chapter as a result. Don't worry I will still guarantee two chapters a month if I can't do an extra chapter by this month so hang in there everyone.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!? JUST WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO MAKOTO NANAYA!? WHAT ARE RELIUS CLOVER'S PLANS THE MOMENT HE MANAGES TO GET HIS HANDS ON HER!? WHAT IS RACHEL ALUCARD'S INTEREST IN MAKOTO NANAYA FUELED BY!? Well... Subscribe and keep on reading if you dare.**


	7. Canon 6: Soul Of Memories

(A New CANON and yes! It has been confusing to keep up for a little while but hang in there! Many questions will be answered soon .)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 6

Previously on Canon Distortion...

Makoto Nanaya was trying to make her way towards the NOL Kagutsuchi headquarters with the hopes of using the cauldron there to get back to her own timeline. However a series of run in's from people she knew yet eventually led to her meeting the ever elusive Relius Clover for the very first time. The masked man expressed an interest on the woman himself, ordering his automaton Ignis to capture her. With Rachel Alucard standing by the sidelines to see what was happening... just what is going to happen to Makoto Nanaya?..

And Now...The Canon continues...

* * *

Makoto was panting... panting like she had never thought she could. The battle she had with Iron Tager earlier was tough enough but it wasn't as mentally draining as the fight that was in front of her. '_**Just what is with this guy! He's not even trying to fight!**_' Makoto thought as Relius Clover snapped his finger, commanding Ignis to charge forward and ram herself through a pillar that Makoto was taking cover from, spraying debris in the process.

"_**Shit!**_" Makoto swore as she raised her fists to block a series of Ignis swipes, barely able to do so thanks to her cross tonfas providing extra support. Despite this, Ignis was easily swiping her into the air, carrying her as she did so as Makoto quickly separated herself using her clones, confusing the robot to swiping at all of them at once. As Ignis did so, Makoto used the robot's head as a platform to jump from as she made a beeline dash right for Relius who was completely open at that point.

"**YOU'RE MINE NOW! YOU MASKED FREAK!**" Makoto yelled as she threw her fist right into Relius's mask, Relius not even trying to move as she was surprised to see that he was standing there, completely unfazed as she charged up her fists and began to land a series of level 3 barrages, all aimed at her mask with the hopes that she could break and defeat Relius that way. Relius however had different plans as he simply tapped his mask where Makoto had punched several times at, showing her that she barely made a dent.

"**Ahhhh... Well then... in that case, You are mine.**" Relius said, raising his cloak and making a mechanical arm emerge from his coat, shocking Makoto as she dodged out of the way as Relius summoned out a pair of gears to chase after where she had dodged to. Makoto tried to react in time but Relius was not going to let her, ordering Ignis to charge right into Makoto and slam her right into the gears, causing her to get hurt in the process as the gears spun and struck her several times.

Ignis was not done however as Relius snapped his fingers to create a pool of spinning gears as Ignis grabbed Makoto by the back of her head and slammed her into said gears, causing each one to grind and strike her several times. Makoto screamed out in pain as Relius examined Makoto closer as Ignis continued to grip tightly on her. "**My... even after such an assault your soul continues to shine brightly. Such resilience would make you perfect for my next project!**" Relius exclaimed as he raised his hands in the air, spreading several spinning gears into the air.

"**Now... Show me more of your soul Makoto Nanaya!**" Relius demanded as Makoto had enough of the pain being dished out to her and had to use a burst to get Ignis off her. However at this point, Makoto had been hurt in ways she had not expected as she realized that one of her arms was near busted, probably broke a couple of fingers as tightening up to a fist simply just hurts. Despite this, Makoto was used to having her bones broken, beaten down hard as Relius could sense a change coming out of Makoto's soul as he grinned, having spotted a weakness he could exploit.

"**I see... The way you fight... You don't really care for yourself do you...**" Relius said, confusing Makoto as she stood there, keeping her fighting pose as he nodded his head. "**No... you are used to being beaten and broken... looking at your form right now proves that to me.**" Relius continued as Makoto felt something inside her go to a chill as she clenched her fists even more tightly. "**Shut up... You don't know me at all!**" Makoto yelled as Relius shook his head.

"**I am afraid you are wrong with that statement Miss Nanaya. I know everything about you... from your history in Shinatsu, to the academy accepting you for your physical aptitude to even your body's ability to resist seithr. You see... while this may be the first time we meet, I have already done my homework and researched everything about you.**" Relius said, slowly approaching Makoto whose focus was starting to wane and a sense of dread began to creep up on her.

"**SHUT UP! YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT ME!**" Makoto yelled as she swung an unfocused fist right for Relius, Relius easily dodging the attack as he pushed it to the side. "**Really now? What about your friendship with Noel Vermillion and Tsubaki Yayoi? What about Hunter Long and Jin Kisaragi? What about the girls in that group you called Remix Heart? Tell me honestly, Don't you treasure your bonds with them?**" Relius questioned as Makoto felt hesitant for some reason.

'_**Of course...Of course I treasure my bonds with everyone! I am not lying about my feelings for them!**_' Makoto thought as she tried so desperately to resist what Relius was saying to her, trying to deny it as lies as Relius became even more amused by the way her soul was reacting to the words he was speaking. "**Amazing...your soul is so focused yet it splits into many directions... A rare soul indeed...**" Relius mused to himself as Makoto became more defiant, trying so hard to deny the words being spewed in front of her.

"**SHUT UP ABOUT MY SOUL! I DON'T CARE ABOUT WHAT YOU SAY ABOUT MY SOUL! JUST GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY WAY!**" Makoto Yelled, her defiance reaching an all time high as Relius calmly dodged her attack and tripped her, causing her to stumble as he placed his right arm behind him and extended forward his left hand. "**Ignis, Vol Tedo please.**" as soon as he gave that command, Ignis suddenly emerged from behind him, creating a massive wave of energy that plowed itself right into Makoto, absorbing her into it for a brief moment before a massive wave of seithr exploded out of the ball, shooting Makoto out towards a wall in the process violently as blood dripped from her forehead and mouth.

"**GUH...I AM NOT DONE!**" Makoto yelled but Relius was done letting her have her way as he snapped his finger and before Makoto could react fast enough to escape, Ignis managed to grab her, restraining her with ease as not even her strength was enough to overpower the power that Ignis was outputting. "**GAH! LET ME GO!**" Makoto yelled as she struggled hopelessly to get away, burning away precious energy she needed to fight as Relius calmly walked up towards the restrained squirrel before grabbing her by the chin.

"**Now Now... we have a few more hours left before the timeline shifts... perhaps I should use this time to examine you closer so that I can prepare more data for the next time we meet.**" Relius coldly said, Makoto no longer able to resist as he forced her to keep staring at his eyes. From the balcony they sat at, Nago and Gil began to panic as they looked at their beloved vampire princess for what they should do. "**So... it's not this one then?..**" Rachel coldly said, having seen this very scene play out in front of her eyes.

To most people, she is simply a Gothic Lolita girl who loves English tea. However to a select few, she is an observer, one who is selected to oversee events that happens around the world and ensure they reach to the conclusion that their master decides it to be. Rachel herself had some degree of freedom to do whatever she wanted but to keep her power, she needed to restrain herself, wait for the right time to intervene. This wasn't the first time she had observed Makoto Nanaya be captured like this, and if the events played out like they should, then it should also means that what Relius plans to do to her is equally true.

"**My eyes didn't deceive me when I saw your soul... so... in your timeline Mu-12 did survive being wiped out... Most amazing indeed...**" Relius muttered as Makoto began to piece together things and struggled even more. "**No! Stop looking at my memories! Stop trying to pry into my brain!**" As soon as Makoto made that realization however, Relius couldn't help but smile as Makoto felt a ringing pain vibrate throughout her brain, a headache even more severe than any hangover she could ever have received.

An invisible hand began to worm it's way into Makoto's head, directly grabbing at her brain and pulling on it as it wished. Makoto was unable to hold her head in agony as her arms were heavily restrained behind her, her forehead sweating profusely as she vainly struggled to subdue the pain ringing in her mind. Soon, the hand began to stir, picking out memories from her mind as it pleased left and right... from the fun times... to her happiest moments... as they flashed in her mind as brief pictures.

"**Those are my memories you asshole... Don't you touch them... Just... Just leave them alone!**" Makoto said but her words meant nothing to Relius as he kept prying. His brief scuttle with Makoto gave him all of the necessary details needed to pry into her mind and get whatever information he so desired. "**So friendship is your soul's core... but there must be more beyond the surface... Let's go deeper... ****Much... ****deeper...**" Relius said as he placed his hand right on her forehead, causing the invisible hand to dig even deeper, burrowing itself even further into Makoto's mind as she let out a bloodcurdling scream.

"**AAAAHHHGGGHHHH! STOP! JUST PLEASE STOP!**" Makoto yelled, tears coming out of her eyes from the excruciating pain she was forced to endure as Relius heard foosteps behind him. "**Oh my... Is this what you were planning to do to the squirrel bitch?**" Hazama said, spinning his knives as one of his hands hiding something behind as Relius simply chose to ignore him while Makoto herself was unable to focus on what was going on.

"**Fine by me, I was planning on murdering her myself and then enjoying that sweet body of hers... But fuck that, this is so much more enjoyable... AIN'T IT RABBIT!"** Hazama screamed as Rachel knew at that point her cover had been blown as she soon teleported herself to where Hazama and Relius were, Gil transforming himself into a chair for her to sit on. "**Now I don't enjoy such barbaric acts unlike you Terumi... I am merely acting as an observer should in this case.**" Rachel replied as Hazama scoffed at that.

"**Now don't say such words like that, it looks like Relius boy himself has yet to reach the main event.**" Hazama said with a small grin coming out of his face, his eyes opening to reveal dim and narrow yellow eyes as he looked at the act in front of him with a child like grin. Relius himself soon discovered something that began to play in Makoto's head that caused her to cry out in pure agony. "**Ahhhh... Now what is this?... Discrimination...Abuse...Betrayal...and even hatred?.. It seems that deep down inside... You actually hate humans!**" Relius said, laughing at the end at the discovery he made as Makoto's tears flowed down her face like streams down a river, the agony painful for Rachel to watch.

"**IT HURTS! IT HURTS! JUST...JUST STOP!**" Makoto pathetically screamed her mind being tortured as the fear she tried to suppress and the resentment she had to hid for so long were now out in the open, forced to her eyes for her and Relius to see. '_**Why am I suffering for things that are not in my control! I never did anything wrong to anybody! So why does everyone hate me!? WHY!?**_' Makoto's mind screamed as her voice was slowly drained of any life.

"**Pain...Violence...Loneliness... Par for the course.**" Relius said as if he was reading of a checklist one would get for their groceries, not caring of the pain he was currently inflicting onto Makoto as he soon stumbled onto something that even he did not expect. "**Now what is this?**" The moment Relius made that discovery, Makoto couldn't help but close her eyes, the fight she had within her before fading as all she could do is simply whimper.

* * *

Makoto: **NO... Don't...Please... Not That!...**

Relius: **You may call them your friends... But deep down you don't trust them.**

Makoto: **AAAHHGGGHHH...NO...NO STOP I...I**

Relius: **The years you spent far apart from them... the years you had to endure being alone while they still had each other... Deep down, you are just waiting for the day that they will just abandon you and leave you be... You're merely doing what the animals do when oppressed creatures cozy up to those that are superior to them...**

Makoto's Mind: _**Hmph... They probably laugh at me when I am not around... I bet that they hate me.**_

* * *

"**NOOOOOO!**" Makoto screamed in desperation, her mind reaching it's breaking point as Ignis was not even restraining her at this point, having moved to be by Relius's side as Makoto remained motionless on the ground, on her knees and staring deep into Relius Clover's masked eyes. "**PLEASE STOP IT...STOP!**" Makoto begged, as that is all she could do at this point, beg for her life... beg to be spared the torture that was being presented to her. Begging that was simply music to Hazama's ears but simply pitiful for Rachel's. So much so that she wanted to leave at that very moment.

"**So... Number 12 exists in your timeline... Judging by your memories of her. And so did her closest companion Hunter Long... In this timeline... they are both dead as you can tell..**" Relius spoke, now desperately searching for something, like a doctor trying to find a cancer cell to kill as he continued to burrow Makoto's mind, the squirrel girl no longer even trying to resist anymore as all she could do was let out a few moans of despair.

'_**I can't move my body... can't even speak... mind...becoming...so hazy...**_' Makoto said in her mind, her will being drained out of her body as at this point, her soul had become that of an open book for Relius to read to his very desire, unhindered by the blocks it tried to put up to stop him. "**This means that the failed clones back in Ibukido chose this timeline to send you back to huh... Most intriguing indeed...**" Relius commented as that couldn't help but make Hazama grin as he walked up to Relius and gently tapped his shoulder.

"**May I guess...this is it?**" Hazama asked as he revealed to Relius's eyes, a patch of red hair that Makoto herself saw as her moans became even louder. "**Ahhh...so Tsubaki Yayoi's no more...**" Relius Clover commented as that was the trigger he had been looking for as he could now clearly see the Soul of Makoto Nanaya in front of him, it's bright blue and green light was now visible and glowing strongly in front of his eyes.

"**So that was the trigger needed for me to reshape your soul in whatever shape I desire...hmmm.**" Relius commented as Makoto's mind began to black out. '_**Everythings...becoming...so hazy... so...dark... It's like... It's like... I have nothing...anymore...**_' Makoto thought, despair finally grasping her as Rachel herself had enough of the sight in front of her and began to prepare to teleport herself away from this sad and pitiful sight, slightly disappointed that even in this possibility, she was not one step closer towards the goal that she was trying to achieve.

'**I am sorry my dear Squirrel... maybe in the next possibility you will...**' But before Rachel could finish her train of thought, Relius had noticed a piece of chain attached onto Makoto's neck as he went out to reach it, exposing the necklace that Makoto had been wearing this entire time. "**This necklace... I did not see it in my search through her memories...could it be?**" Relius said as that was enough to make Rachel stop what she was trying to do as Relius looked at Hazama.

"**Hazama, I require Ouroboros. If you may, please unlock any memories that may be sealed away deep in her subconsciousness.**" Relius asked as Hazama scratched his head. "**Do you even need to do that? The bitch's fucking out of it for all I care!**" Hazama said but without warning Relius stood up and without hesitation stared deep into the snake's very soul. "**Do I need to ask a second time?... or do you wish to see what else I am capable of doing with a soul?**" Relius demanded as Hazama froze for a second before grumbling in an annoyed voice as he formed a circle where Makoto Nanaya's head and lunged Ouroboros into it.

As he did this, Relius pulled the chain out of Makoto's neck, allowing him to hold it as he used it as a focus for his memory dive into Makoto's soul, searching for any particular memories involved with this necklace. He would not stop until every single stone had been turned and Makoto was truly and utterly perfect to reshape as he wished. As he did so... Makoto Nanaya herself began to see memories... memories that thanks to Ouroboros were beginning to resurface once again... as for the first time since ever...

* * *

**...A strange sense of relief began to pool into her...**

* * *

**MAKOTO POV**

* * *

So dark... It's so dark... The memories... they are just so painful... I just want to shut them away again... seal them back and stop thinking about them all over again. I didn't deserve any of this... I am the victim here... I just wanted to live my life on my own terms... not because of what I am or who I am with... Yet at the end of the day, if that leads me to being all alone... that's so scary... Maybe deep down... Relius is right about what he said about me... Maybe I am just a shallow human being after all...

Noel...Tsubaki... Mai.. Cajun even shiori... I say that they are my friends and yet, I didn't actually try hard enough to maintain my friendship with them... even when we did meet... it all felt so shallow... like I was doing it just because I wanted to escape the solitude... escape the fact that deep down, I was just all alone. Alone in my line of work, with nobody else I trust to talk to... I wanted to cling onto them so desperately yet at the end of the day... I may just be playing myself... letting them do whatever they want with me... I am truly a shallow human being deep inside...

"_**What's wrong with being alone?**_" A voice echoed as I looked around this empty scene around me, my whole body feeling so heavy when I did so. Who was that? Who said that? "_**Sure... being alone is scary... yet at the same time, to be truly alone means to forsake the bonds you make.**_" the voice continued as that voice... it felt so comforting for some reason. "_**But what's the point of making bonds if they are just going to be ripped out of my hands one day... What's the point of trying to form connections with people when it can come crashing down?..**_" I said weakly, unable to accept what the voice had just said to me.

"_**Who says that you are alone in the first place?**_" The voice said as that made me look in front of see the person I have been seeing in my dreams lately, their figure looking right at me as he knelt down and looked at me in the eyes. "_**True... you can lose everything... but bonds never die even if the person you formed that bond with does. As long as that person lives in your memories... they will always be alive Makoto.**_" The voice replied as his voice...it felt so calming...so...warm... Unlike that masked freak's cold uncaring tone...

"_**...I lost everything myself... **__**my place in the world**__**.. the people I **__**loved and **__**cared for... I even had to take the lives of people I don't even know, denying myself bonds that I could have formed... Hell I was even scared of forming new bonds **__**just in case I would lose them again... if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be able to move on myself.**_" The voice spoke as it was becoming clearer to me as I felt a breeze hit my face as I realize I was sitting down on the hill by the academy, under of the shade of the sole tree there.

"_**That's why... even though we are separating now... I believe one day we will meet once again Makoto. Regardless of what happens from here on out, I promise to come back to you once again... so please promise me you will do the same as well.**_" The voice said, now becoming clearer to me as it was actually the white haired man I have been trying to figure out this entire time, his face now becoming so much more clearer to me as his sole yellow eye stared right at me with a warmth that I am starting to realize...I have felt before.

"_**Of course I will... I have made so many promises with you, I have no intentions of letting a single one be broken ever...**_" I said as his voice...his voice felt so calming. "_**That's good to hear Makoto. But I don't feel like just saying it in words anymore.**_" The man said as he stood up, revealling to me his face for the first time as he got down on his knees in front of my face and offered me his hand, "_**I want to make an oath with you... an oath of blood.**_" the man said as I stared at the hand he was offering to me.

"_**An oath of blood? So you mean a Sakazuki?**_" I questioned as he nodded his head. "_**An Oath is a lifelong contract. Once that oath is signed... we are eternally bound by that oath till the day we die.**_" The man explained as I looked at his hand as I couldn't help but smile. "_**An Oath sounds more proper than a promise... Sora.**_" The moment I heard that name, it felt like a wave of memories begin to rush into me, memories that I thought were just figments of my imagination actually existing.

Suddenly, pictures of the past that happened begin to resurface... Sora...Sora Minakaze... I know who he is now! He's... He's the one who taught me that it's alright to have all of this ugliness inside me... he's the one who accepted that aspect of myself a long time ago, the one person who I can confide to.. He's also the one who protected me at several points at my life... even when I tried to reject him for being the person who nearly killed me. How on Earth did I forget someone as precious as him?! How did I let myself become this pathetic!? How did I let this asshole have his way with me!?

* * *

**...When I already have someone that I desperately don't want to lose to!?**

* * *

As soon as the name Sora Minakaze came from the mind of Makoto Nanaya, Relius himself couldn't believe what he was seeing. Memories... memories of an individual he has never met before. Memories of an individual who seems so insignificant yet at the same time the very back of his mind was screaming that he knew this person, he know who Sora Minakaze was... yet he couldn't put a finger as to why.

"**Uhhh... Earth to Relius? Am I done sifting through this bitch's memories? Because there's absolutely...**" Before Hazama could even finish his statement, he felt a hand grab his wrist before violently throwing him to the wall with strength that caught him completely off guard as Relius himself was caught off guard by this and retreated as a result. Relius couldn't even utter a word of shock as he saw Makoto Nanaya, standing on her two feet with the chain of Ouroboros still linked with her mind.

"**OH THAT'S IT! I AM MAKING SURE YOU ARE BRAIN DEAD!**" Hazama screamed as he tried to order Ouroboros to completely destroy Makoto's mind, But Makoto simply grabbed the chain that was linked to her head and began to pull Ouroboros out with great strength. Rachel Alucard herself was caught off guard by this sudden show of force as just a few minutes ago, Makoto Nanaya looked like she was about to perish into nothingness yet for some reason, she was able to pull herself back together and was actually fighting back.

"**Compared to what I went through... THIS IS NOTHING!**" Makoto screamed as she pulled the chain, forcing Hazama to violently come towards her as she raised her fist, propelling it right onto Hazama's face, ignoring the bones being broken in the process as Hazama flew accross the massive hallway, causing Relius to immediately send Ignis to subdue Makoto once again. "**I still have something I need to fulfill...an oath I need to keep... If I don't keep that oath... I AM A TERRIBLE GIRLFRIEND!**"

Then...for a brief moment, the world went silent as the colour slowly drained away from the scenery, becoming black and white as Rachel and Relius realized that they were experiencing an Overdrive. Their eyes soon returned to Makoto Nanaya who was exuding an aura of power as an orange glow surrounded her arms as Ignis began to try and subdue her. "**SO GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY!**" Makoto screamed as her punch landed right onto Ignis's metal shell and formed a small dent on the automaton, sending her flying through a bunch of pillars in the process.

Her soul was screaming... Makoto Nanaya's soul was screaming out loud as Relius could clearly see her soul flaring up, brightly shining it's light towards him like no other soul has ever had before. Her soul was perfect before but now... it has somehow managed to even exceed that. '**Miss Nanaya's soul... It's beyond perfection... it's become what I need to fulfill my very goals!**' Relius thought as Makoto suddenly appeared in front of his face, forcing him to block using a series of gears to do so as Makoto with the greatest of ease, ripped through the defenses he set up.

"**I AM GOING TO RIP YOUR FACE OFF!**" Adrenaline flowed through Makoto's veins, just as much as her soul was screaming to fight on as she immediately charged up her fist for a Distortion drive as the world distorted itself even further around her and Relius. Relius immediately formed a barrier in front of him to protect himself from the attack that was to come. The barrier was a wise choice on his part as he found himself staggering as he felt the barrier struggle to maintain it's shape.

'**Such strength behind those punches of hers... is this Makoto Nanaya's overdrive?!**' Relius thought as Makoto raised her fist and began to deliver a barrage of punches right into Relius's barrier, causing it to crack and chip off as she cocked back her fist to deliver a powerful uppercut right into the barrier, shattering it in the process as her fist landed squarely on Relius's chin, launching him into the air.

"**PARTICLE...**" As Makoto continued to charge energy into her fist, Relius continued to zoom high into the air as without warning, as he briefly blinked, he saw Makoto Nanaya dawn right above him, having appeared where she was near instantaneously as her fist smashed itself right into Relius's masked face, causing it to crack heavily down the middle. "**FLARE!**" As a massive astral fist came soon after, smashing itself right into Relius's face and smashing him to the ground as Makoto's overdrive wore out at that very moment, forcing Relius to release his grip on the necklace that he had taken from Makoto as her hands shakily reached out to pick it up.

Now that her memories of Sora had returned, she finally understood the meaning behind the necklace. This necklace was not just any ordinary necklace but part of a pair of necklaces that Sora had bought for both him and her to wear as he gave it to her when he left Torifune that day as she felt all of her strength leave her body, dropping down to her knees as she placed it on her head, trying to get a grasp of what is going on as she felt so disorientated.

As she exposed herself for attack, Hazama began to approach her. Everything was going wrong and it was her fault. If it wasn't for her, then things wouldn't have become as disasterous as it had become. "**No more games! I am going fucking kill you!**" Hazama screamed, raising his knife in the air to stab her but Rachel knew at this point she had found what she was looking for as she formed a shield between him and Makoto, causing Makoto to look at the gothic princess in confusion as Rachel silently created a portal to send both her and Makoto away from the scene, greatly frustrating Hazama in the process.

"**GODDAMN YOU RABBIT! AFTER I JUST FIXED MY MOOD WITNESSING THE YAYOI BITCH'S DEATH!**" Hazama screamed as he soon turned his attention towards Relius who held onto his face, obscuring his eyes as his mask laid on the ground, crumbled to pieces and in need of a replacement. That did not stop Hazama from taking his frustration on the man however as Hazama grabbed Relius by his collar and slammed him to a nearby pillar.

"**Just tell me what on Earth's going on Relius?! Why are you obsessed over this Nanaya bitch?! And what's just so special about her soul that you even had the time to let her get her strength back to escape!?**" Hazama questioned, his questions were ones that needed answers but Relius couldn't help but chuckle, chuckle in a manner that even unsettled Hazama as Relius grinned. "**Oh Miss Nanaya... I must acquire your soul... This particular Nanaya's soul must be mine...**" Relius said, having ignored what Hazama had just said in the process.

"**Hazama, I require your Ouroboros once more. Make sure I never forget this incident. Ingrain it into my very memory so that no matter what timeline I am in, I will always be able to remember it.**" Relius demanded as Hazama couldn't help but widen his eyes at that. He always knew that Relius was a bit loose in the mind but to think he would be so mad as to demand him to permanently anchor a memory into his mind...

"**You are really one crazy asshole man... Even I have my limits... But hey, If you insist on it, I don't mind. Just don't blame me if you end up hurting for it!**" Hazama said as his words felt as dishonest as ever but Relius didn't care. He was the only person who could grant him the ability to permanently remember anything regardless of which timeline he is in and he needed that ability for his own purposes. Makoto Nanaya before had his interest for the longest time... but with this sudden development, of a person he should know yet doesn't for some strange reason... He cannot help but contain a smile.

* * *

**...for what may become his greatest creation yet...**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW ARE YOU ALL DOING!? Here is the bonus chapter I had promised you guys a few days ago. I couldn't help but write an extra chapter this month, I just felt inspired and wanted to get this to you guys rather than let the inspiration disappear from my mind. I hope you all enjoy the extra chapter that I made sure to work extra hard on so that it comes out in enough time that I can start relaxing.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!? WHAT IS MAKOTO NANAYA GOING TO DO NOW THAT SHE REMEMBERS SORA MINAKAZE!? JUST HOW ON EARTH DID SHE EVEN FORGET THE MAN IN THE FIRST PLACE!? AND WHAT ARE RELIUS CLOVER'S PLANS FOR HER SHOULD HE MANAGE TO GET HIS HANDS ON HER!? Well we did get a small glimpse of what may happen but maybe sometimes that small glimpse is enough to terrify people in the process...**


	8. Canon 7: The Squirrel's Resolve

(A NEW CANON HAS ARRIVED! And with it, hopefully, some questions will finally be answered once and for all .)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 7

Makoto felt tired... Makoto felt so tired... It felt like she had not slept for years but at the same time she couldn't. The last thing she remembered was that she had to fight for her life against a creepy masked man who thought it was a good idea to go prying around her mind and nearly turned her into a vegetable in the process. The only good thing that came from this whole mess was that her memories of Sora Minakaze returned... and even then she couldn't help but wonder how on Earth she forgot about him,

As her eyes slowly opened, she realized that she was standing in the ports of the Torifune station, Sora standing in front of her as well as Makoto realized that she was relieving another memory, this time she was fully aware that she is in a memory about Sora Minakaze as she decided that she should just relieve them. Forgetting about Sora made her want to relieve every single memory of the man so his face would be burned into her very soul.

"_**Well... This is it I guess...**_" Sora said as he scratched his head, standing in front of Makoto while he waited for his airship to come in. "_**Yeah... it is.**_" Makoto replied as they both stared at each other, wondering what they should say to each other as Sora decided to start that conversation. "_**Well... at least we managed to do it...**_" Sora said, making Makoto blush a bit as he decided that was how he would start the conversation.

"_**Really... our final time being able to talk like this before we go off and start working...and you decide to start with sex... Really smooth there man.**_" Makoto commented as Sora scratched his head, blushing a bit in the process. "_**Well I am sorry that I decided to start the conversation with that. It's just... I don't feel like saying goodbye yet you know.**_" Sora explained as Makoto understood what he was saying, nodding her head as she went in for a hug.

"_**I know Sora... Saying goodbye is not a thing I normally do myself.**_" Makoto said, hugging Sora gently in her arms as he did the same. "_**But we made our choices... and we have already graduated.**_" Makoto continued as Sora nodded his head. "_**So... starting tomorrow you are going off to the NOL?**_" Sora asked as Makoto shook her head. "_**They are giving us a week to see our families, you know, let them know that we are alright before we head to NOL headquarters for official work.**_" Makoto explained as Sora nodded his head, making sure to listen to everything she said.

"_**What about you? What's the plan once you go back to Otsu? Start working straight away?**_" Makoto asked as Sora thought about it for a bit. "_**I mean... I don't have to... but most likely, see what's going on in Otsu, with talks about Otsu becoming a separate hierarchical city and new management coming in, I think it's best if I stay there for a while before I go out.**_" Sora explained as that logic was sound for Makoto.

"_**Well at least you aren't tossing yourself into the blender straight away... though are you going to be alright there? I mean Otsu's a criminal den and once the NOL pulls away from there, all the criminals are going to go crazy.**_" Makoto explained as Sora scratched his head. "_**Come on now, Not all of Otsu are just criminals who are looking to let loose like that one movie series. It's just that Otsunians just want to live their lives without being hindered by anybody... even if it's illegal.**_" Sora explained as Makoto rubbed his head.

"_**I know Sora... and it's also home to delicious spider crab, so you better promise me that we get to have that once we meet up again for a date, this time without everyone else looking at us.**_" Makoto asked as Sora smiled and patted her head. "_**Don't worry Makoto. I promise that you will get your Fuyuhodon Spider Crab when we finally have the time and chance to date.**_" Sora promised as an airship soon descended down where the two stood, an airship leading to Otsu where Sora was the only passenger.

"_**Well... there is your ride, I guess this is time for us to go.**_" Makoto said, not wanting to part from his warm hand as Sora felt the same way for Makoto. "_**Yup... I have to get going now...**_" Sora said reluctantly as they slowly parted from each other as Sora turned to face the airship door that was opening in front of him. Makoto turned away, not wanting to see Sora leave until Sora realized that he had forgotten to give Makoto something as he quickly turned and tapped her shoulder.

"_**Before I leave...I want you to have something first.**_" Sora said as Makoto turned around and soon heard the jingle of metals as he placed something right onto her hands, making her look down to see a silver necklace with runes engraved all over the chain itself and a singular dog tag that she could clearly see has the crest of Sora's drive engraved on it. "_**I know...it's not much at first isn't it.**_" Sora said as Makoto couldn't help but look at the necklace with all of her interest as Sora couldn't help but grin.

"_**Well... that necklace is actually just a part of a pair I had custom made. I was getting worried that it wouldn't finish in time but I am glad they managed to do so... even if it meant I had to pay more to ensure it.**_" Sora confessed as Makoto looked at him intrigued as Sora revealed to her another similar pair of the same necklace she had. The main difference from hers was that his version was gold and had her drive's symbol on it's tag instead of his.

"_**But that's not why it took so long... this is the cool part.**_" as soon as Sora said that, he brought the two necklaces closer together, allowing Makoto to hear the metal jingle as the two necklaces were attracted to each other and soon fused to become an interlinked gold and silver necklace, the tags holding their drive's crests now forming to one large crest containing aspects of both of their drives, a world tree with chains bursting free from it as Makoto's eyes widened at that.

"_**That...That is so cool..**_" Makoto said, unable to hold back her awe as Sora couldn't help but grin at the surprise that was on her face. "_**I know right? And the best part is that it is only unique for these two necklaces, meaning we have the only pair in existence to do something like this.**_" Sora said, smiling as he pulled on the chain lightly, causing the one big necklace to separate and become two once again as Makoto held hers closer. "_**Sora... I don't know what to say..."**_ Makoto said as Sora scratched his head.

"_**I know... maybe just don't ask for how much it cost to get it made as well as how much it costed to accelerate the whole process... let's just say that I am glad that I have a lot of cash that I can start using.**_" Sora explained as that was enough to tell Makoto that the necklace she was holding on to was worth a lot of cash and the exact amount was something she probably didn't want to hear unless she was willing to suffer a heart attack for her poor girl heart.

"_**I...I don't know what to say... I don't know if I am worth such an expensive gift like this.**_" Makoto asked as she looked down a bit as Sora smiled and lifted her chin to face him. "_**To me Makoto, you are always worth more than any amount of money in the world. Nothing in this world will buy me the happiness that you gave me. That I can say confidently.**_" Sora said as he gave her a warm kiss, allowing him to feel her gentle lips as Makoto closed her eyes and smiled softly accepting the kiss.

"_**And I promise that when I am more free... we will meet each other in the bigger world out there Sora.**_" Makoto said, returning another kiss to Sora as he soon was in the airship, flying away from Torifune...away from her as she looked back at the final gift that Sora had given to her before he left fondly, dangling the silver chain right into the sun as it shone right on the metal before she kissed it warmly and wore it on her neck, promising herself one very important thing she will do in the future.

* * *

**That fate would allow her to meet with her love someday in the future.**

* * *

The first thing Makoto saw in front of her was the dirt on the ground she was currently lying on. Her head rung with a great pain as she shook her head gently to wake herself up. "**Ahhh... So you are finally awake.**" A voice said as Makoto looked up immediately, her senses on high alert as she was about to assume a fighting stance when she realized the figure in front of her wasn't trying to pick a fight with her...and was also a tiny blonde haired girl.

"**I can understand that you are on high alert after what you have gone through... but I cannot help but be surprised you can be standing on your feet after what that masked man did to you.**" the little kid commented as Makoto's vision soon focused, allowing her to see that this kid had a headband that gave her rabbit ears for some reason. "**You're not a rabbit beastkin...right?**" Makoto said, trying to use humor to erase the memory of being horribly violated by a man like Relius Clover.

"**I can understand why now Relius is so after you... You truly are one interesting individual after all...**" the kid said as Makoto couldn't help but hold her hand up in the air to stop her as Makoto shook her head for a bit, "**First of all... who are you... and second of all, can we not bring up that man please? Just hearing his name or thinking about his face makes my head spin...**" Makoto said, trying to keep the pain she was feeling in as if she had suffered a massive hangover.

"**I am Rachel Alucard... and I can understand if you wish to have some space.**" Rachel said as Makoto couldn't help but look at the Gothic Lolita with a growing interest as Rachel smiled and looked back at her. "**I would recommend you first take it slow, your soul was nearly ripped out of your physical body and you were barely able to regain control over it.**" Rachel explained as Makoto couldn't help but look at her with slight confusion. Her face told Rachel that she was confused as to what Rachel had said and she needed to know more.

"**I supposed that you would like to know more about souls do you Miss Nanaya?**" Rachel asked as Makoto decided that she could use the explanation, after all, if Relius Clover is going to be after her, it's better that she knew what made her the target of such a creepy man. "**Well... better to know why that masked asshole is so interested in me than be ignorant about it so... yeah... what on earth is a soul?**" Makoto asked as Rachel took a small deep breath, knowing very well that explaining to anybody what is a soul exactly can be one of the most difficult things a person can do... even for a woman with her experience.

"**Souls in general are a person's true nature. They are what define a person and who they are from the moment they are born.**" Rachel said but Makoto looked lost right from the get go. A person's true nature? Born when a person is born? This is really some stuff that she didn't think she would get to hear. "**To make it easier for you... Souls are memories.**" Rachel explained, hoping that would make more sense for Makoto.

Makoto was about to say something but was immediately reminded of her experience with Relius... the memory fresh in her mind... the way his hand burrowed deep into her subconsciousness, digging up memories that she had tried to suppress for so long. "**I guess when you put it like that... It would explain why that masked freak was able to read my head so easily... So soul's aren't some spiritual mumbo jumbo that people created but a real thing?**" Makoto asked as Rachel nodded her head.

"**I am afraid that the mumbo jumbo you speak off was created due to a lack of understanding about souls in the first place. Even I lack the full knowledge as I only know that much about souls... the only person who can truly say holds that knowledge... is unfortunately Relius Clover.**" Rachel explained as Makoto help her hand on her chest as she felt her heart beat softly. Despite that, she couldn't help but keep thinking about the fact that there is something else that is resting inside her that she cannot see.

"**So why me then? What's so interesting about my soul? That masked freak messed with my head so much and spewed so much bullshit that I felt like I was about to get ripped apart.**" Makoto said as Rachel closed her eyes, wondering if she should go that far. "**Do you want to know?**" Rachel asked, her voice sounding serious as Makoto simply nodded her head, wanting to know everything at this point.

"**Your soul is unique because of how many different memories you hold within it. Both good and bad... the memories accumulated has enriched your soul and thus has made your soul powerful in the process.**" Rachel explained as things were beginning to make sense to Makoto at that moment. If souls are memories and if memories mean strength... then it would make sense for Relius to come after her if her soul was that strong... the thing that concerned her was what was he going to do to her once he had her in his grasps... the thought of being experimented on and being unable to do a damn thing terrified her inside.

"**I would suggest staying as far away as possible from Mr Clover, now that he has seen your soul, he will undoubtedly make it his goal to go after you and make your soul his.**" Rachel advised as Makoto nodded her head at that, seeing no point in arguing about that. But there was even more ringing in her mind as she couldn't believe she had nearly forgotten her original goal, having been distracted by souls for a bit too long.

"**I will do that... but more importantly, do you know how am I going to get back to my timeline? I need to get back home so I can make sure everyone else is safe.**" Makoto said as Rachel looked at her with interest. "**I see you are aware of the fact that you are currently living in a timeline not of your own. That is good to know. I have the means to send you back but I ask for you to answer me a few questions of my own before I proceed to assist you.**" Rachel asked as Makoto took a deep breath and stared right at Rachel in the eyes.

* * *

Makoto: **Okay... what's the question in your mind then Rachel?**

Rachel: **Are you aware of the Black Rebellion? Where the Black Lotus, a mercenary organisation attacked the hierarchical city of Torifune?**

Makoto: **Yeah... I was a part of that war...along with my friends... ****it was a rough time too, we barely made it with our lives.**

Rachel: **Do tell me... ****Do you know of an individual who has white haiir, a bright yellow eye and missing a left arm? The one that the 1****st**** free city of Otsu call Sora Minakaze?**

Makoto:**... How on Earth do you even know about Sora?**

* * *

Rachel herself was surprised to hear a voice of shock come out from Makoto's voice as Makoto looked at her with an intensity that she had never given before. "**I have my methods... though I take that you are both friends?**" Rachel asked as Makoto nodded her head. "**Yeah...We know each other.. at least I would like to say that but for some reason, my memories of the man I love were erased from my mind and if it wasn't for that masked freak, I wouldn't have known who on Earth you were talking about.**" Makoto replied sternly as she clenched her fists, feeling pissed at herself for forgetting someone who was so important to her.

"**I lived for the past 2 years... forgetting someone important...precious to me... I may be a bit of a moron sometimes but I am not that much of a moron to not know that forgetting someone so easily like that is not normal! I need to know why this happened... how it happened and where I can go to find Sora... I need to know that he's alright... he's safe and make sure he stays that way.**" Makoto said, her mind racing with worry for Sora as she didn't know if something terrible has happened to him.

Rachel could tell by just looking at Makoto that she was serious with the words that she said, but Rachel also knew the dangers and risks of what Makoto was planning to do as she debated on offering aid to a woman she has aided a lot already. "**I am just curious though... why are you particularly focused on this Sora? Aren't you worried for your other friends?**" Rachel asked, curious to see what Makoto's response would be as she didn't know this version of Makoto Nanaya very well and couldn't help but be intruiged by it in the process.

"**I mean don't get me wrong... Of course I am worried about Noellie and Tsubaki... But I also need to know that Sora's alright. I have to meet him and make sure he's alright.**" Makoto said as she placed her hand on her chest, clenching tightly on the necklace that Sora gave her two years ago. "**I need to do this... I need to find out why.**" Makoto continued as Rachel closed her eyes, impressed with Makoto's resolve as she knew that she would do anything for this person...a person that she had no knowledge off except for his name and where she heard it from.

"**Before I tell you anything about Mr Minakaze...I must ask if you are ready to peek what's behind the curtain?**" Rachel asked as Makoto looked at Rachel confused. "**Peek behind the curtain? What do you mean by that?**" Makoto asked as Rachel closed her eyes. "**Mr Minakaze himself... is a part of a process that not even he is aware of. If my suspicions are correction, he is a part of a series of events that have changed the world drastically.**" Rachel continued as Makoto tried to simplify her words so that she would be able to understand.

"**So what you mean to say is that Sora's in trouble...and he doesn't even know about it.**" Makoto said as Rachel nodded her head. "**If I do tell you what I know... you may be potentially be dragged into a battle that not even you may not be prepared for. A battle where not even your fists are able to fight through.**" Rachel explained, emphasizing her point by making sure her voice was as serious as possible for Makoto to understand.

And Makoto got the message. If she wanted to find Sora, she would have to possibly deal with things that may be beyond her control. She may have to meet people like Relius Clover and Hazama again when she returns back to her timeline. Despite that, doing nothing is just unforgivable in her mind as she looked at Rachel back. "**Regardless of what happens from here on out... I need to know. So please Rachel, tell me why I forgot about Sora.**" Makoto asked, deciding to risk herself completely, pulling back the curtain as Rachel herself took a deep breath.

"**First of all... It is not just you who has forgotten about Sora Minakaze back at your timeline. Every single person who has ever interacted with Sora Minakaze has had their memories of him erased in your timeline.**" Rachel explained as Makoto couldn't believe what she was hearing. "**Wait a minute... everyone back at my timeline doesn't even know who he is? How is that even possible!?**" Makoto exclaimed in shock as she couldn't believe what she had just heard.

"**Phenomena intervention...**" Rachel simply said as Makoto couldn't believe she was being dropped another terminology for her to remember. First it was souls and how they worked and now it's this phenomena intervention. '_**I swear...the more I hear this weird and crazy shit, the more I feel like I will go insane from it in the process.**_' Makoto thought as she gestured for Rachel to continue, desperate to try and understand all of the knowledge being given to her to help her understand her current predicament.

"**Simply put, Phenomena intervention is the ability to alter reality itself by changing certain events... a powerful ability in the hands of those who possess such power.**" Rachel said as Makoto was glad this one was easier to understand. "**So you're saying like if someone's dead in one reality, then they are alive in another?**" Makoto suggested as Rachel smiled. "**Well now, you are quick to understand it's meaning, I give you points there.**" Rachel praised as Makoto scratched her head.

Before she could say anything further, her mind was quick to piece together what this phenomenon intervention really did. "**So you're saying that this phenomenon intervention...erased not only my memory of Sora from my mind...but also everyone else's!?**" Makoto said in shock as Rachel gave her some time to process what she had said out loud. "**Not just memories... events... achievements... all mentions of this Sora Minakaze have been completely erased in your timeline. There is not a single trace of what the man ever did in his life left in your world.**" Rachel explained as Makoto's eyes widened at that.

"**B-B-But how!? Sora was involved in the Black War! He was the one who ended the whole damn thing!**" Makoto exclaimed in surprise. "**Simply put, a being of higher power altered reality itself and made sure that any achievements that Sora Minakaze had were given to a suitable replacement... you should know this for yourself don't you.**" Rachel said as Makoto was about to object until she realized that she was right. Before she remembered Sora, she had remembered being given the information not by Sora himself but by Marcus and Chikacho, Sora's closest friends and fellow squad mates during the war and the one who was deemed responsible for ending the war was Hunter, not Sora.

"**But...But why though? Why is this god trying to erase Sora's presence in the world?! That doesn't make sense to me!**" Makoto exclaimed, unable to believe what she was hearing and trying to remain calm. "**That's because his very existence has been deemed as dangerous... something which may tear the fabric of reality itself apart. If I suspect him to be who I am searching for... I fear that his life is in danger as you say it is.**" Rachel explain as Makoto dropped to the ground ass first, trying to process everything she was hearing.

First it was souls and how her soul was deemed to be the strongest soul that the masked freak had ever seen. That would explain why he had dug up so many horrible memories just to break her and turn her into some science experiment. Now it was phenomena intervention, reality itself being ripped apart and bending to the will of some god and how it has deemed that Sora is to be potentially killed for the sake of the world, the scale of what she was hearing was starting to get pretty damn ridiculous and if she told this to anybody, they would have gotten worried sick for her and probably check her in some mental hospital for her safety.

"**I can understand if what I am saying is proving to be too much for you... concepts like these are difficult to understand even if someone tries to simplify it to it's bare essentials.**" Rachel said, understanding Makoto's plight to try and make sense with what was being presented in front of her. "**It's...It's alright, I can manage this much... After all maybe the masked freak's soul tampering has helped me to get used to weird shit like this...**" Makoto replied, reaching out for her flask out of instinct as she sighed when she realized that it was not there.

"**It's just... I don't think I will ever understand this shit even if you explained it to me over and over again.**" Makoto continued as Rachel nodded her head. "**I understand... the short story is that Sora Minakaze's the target of a being of higher power and if my suspicions are correct, he's currently unaware of what is going on.**" Rachel said as Makoto now knew what Rachel meant by peeking behind the curtain.

"**So... there are two choices present in front of you, ignore Mr Minakaze and stay from the cross fire. Or try to find him, and put your life in even more risk than what you are currently experiencing, potentially making you the enemy of the world.**" Rachel asked, Makoto understanding the two choices in front of her. But she was never really the kind of person who would make a rational decision in the first place as she looked at Rachel back with a determined look in her eyes.

"**I see your mind is made up. I can respect that, your moxie impresses me more and more.**" Rachel replied as Makoto took a deep breath to recompose herself. "**Now.. tell me how to get back to my timeline... the one I know. We can save the rest of the questions for later... like where you heard about Sora.**" Makoto said, trying to remain focused on her main objective which was simply to get back home, home to her timeline as Rachel chuckled.

"**No.**" Rachel said as Makoto immediately looked at her with surprised. "**Of course I am joking.**" Makoto immediately reeled as she couldn't believe the sick cruel joke she was hearing coming out from this little girl's mouth. "**Don't say stuff like that! That was one sick cruel joke to try and play in a moment of seriousness here!**" Makoto exclaimed as Rachel sighed as her attempt to try and help the squirrel girl has seemed to backfire unfortunately.

"**In order for you to return back to the world... you need to find what connects your world with this world. Something strong and dependable. Think about what connects you to your true plane of existence.**" Rachel said as at this point, all of the weird talk Makoto had been experiencing at this point has just become normal to her as she closed her eyes, thinking about what she could depend on.

'_**Depend on huh... that would be...Noel and Tsubaki...**_' Makoto thought but immediately tightened her eyes as a thought suddenly came rushing into her mind. '**You don't trust them... no... you are just waiting for the day that they will stab you in the back and leave you to dry.**' Relius voice echoed in her mind as Makoto collapsed to her knees as Rachel realized what was going on. "**I am guessing that the connection that connects you with your world has been damaged due to having your soul ripped out... This is troubling.**" Rachel commented as Makoto held her head, trying to keep herself together.

"**He wasn't wrong to say what he said... his words were true... there was a time in my life where I thought that my friends would stab me in the back. It took a long time for me to realize that is wrong but at the same time I cannot help but feel that is also a partial truth deep inside. That I truly worry for the day that I get abandoned by everyone.**" Makoto confessed as she felt the urge to get that off her chest as she thought about Sora once again.

"**But Sora was the one who helped fixed that aspect of me... helped me to realize that even if they do betray me one day... as long as I remember the bonds we share... none of that betrayal shit matters. Friendships are bonds themselves.**" Makoto continued as Rachel felt something strange happen around her as she noticed a figure slowly manifest itself from the shadows. A figure that she did not recognize from her countless times being an observer.

Makoto soon reached out for her necklace as she looked at the tag bearing the crest of the man she loved, staring at it with an affection she had thought she would never get to experience in her life. "**That's why I need to get back home... I need to get back and make sure he's alright, make sure he knows that his life is in danger. And not just him, I need to get back home to everyone else and help them to the best of my abilities. I may only know how to punch... but that doesn't mean I won't stop trying. Even if it costs me my life.**" Makoto continued as she looked forward and saw the figure walking towards her.

"**Isn't that right... Sora.**" As soon as she said that, the figure finally took a physical form that was not just a black mass as soon, a white haired man with blond tips stood in front of Makoto Nanaya, his left arm was missing but on his right hand he held onto a blood red dagger. He wore the academy outfit with the left sleeve loose and flowing behind his back. As soon as she saw the figure, Makoto took a deep breath and assumed a fighting stance.

"**So even if I have to fight against you of all people to make sure you're safe, I am going to give you my all...SORA!**" Makoto yelled as she charged right at the figure that had taken the form of Sora Minakaze. Rachel Alucard herself was amazed at the series of events that were happening in front of her. '**So... the bond she shares with this Minakaze person is strong enough to force a link between worlds... he might just be the person that I have been looking for...**' Rachel thought as she continued to observe the battle that was happening in front of her, wondering...

* * *

**...Is this all a part of the Azure's plan as well?..**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? I HOPE YOU ALL ARE DOING!? And yes, I know, this is starting to become very Blazblue with all of the terminology. Do not worry, I have tried to make it easier for you all to understand the terminology in a way that doesn't cause massive confusion for you all reading the content. I have to thank the hardworking people over at Blazblue Explained and Blazblue Wiki for giving me the information to understand the terminology that Blazblue throws out and I hope to keep on using them to help make things easier for you guys to understand. **

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!? WHAT IS MAKOTO GOING TO DO WHEN SHE FINALLY ARRIVES BACK TO HER TIMELINE!? WHEN WILL SHE BE ABLE TO MEET UP WITH SORA!? AND JUST WHAT KIND OF PLAN DOES THIS GOD HAVE FOR SORA MINAKAZE!? Well... if you want the answers to these questions and more... all you have to do is simply read on to find the rest.**


	9. Canon 8: The Shifting Winds

(A NEW CANON HAS ARRIVED! we also approach the conclusion to Makoto's journey to get back home )

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 8

Previously on Canon Distortion...

The mystery of Sora Minakaze had been uncovered for Makoto Nanaya. The truth about Makoto forgetting about Sora Minakaze has been made clear. A being of higher power had erased everyone's memories about the man despite Rachel Alucard hearing rumors about him still being alive. Now armed with this knowledge, Makoto Nanaya is ready to fight for her place in the world once again... her own world.

And Now... The Canon Continues...

* * *

Makoto was panting, panting hard at the fight that was placed in front of her. In front of her was a copy of Sora Minakaze that was somehow created, mirroring the way he looked during the Academy as it fought like how he would, brandishing a blood red dagger as he charged right for her, thrusting forward while looking like he was gliding in the air. Even if she was fighting a fake version of the man she loved, it was still a difficult task the world was asking her to do.

'_**Yeah... Just casually fight against the man who fought against a black looking thing to end the Black War. Not a big deal at all!**_' Makoto complained inside as she knew this was the version of the man she had to get through if she wanted to have any hope of getting back home. As she raised her fist to intercept one of the fake Sora's stabs, Rachel cannot help but keep on looking at the sight that was in front of her, specifically at the fake Sora Minakaze that Makoto was fighting right now.

"**So this is the mysterious Event Error we have been looking for?**" Nago said as he floated next to Rachel. "**Yes... but what he looked like two years ago. His appearance may have changed over that period of time so he may not look like this right now.**" Rachel explained as Gil made himself a comfortable chair for her to sit on. "**But still, better to know what he looked like two years ago rather than not at all.**" Gil answered as Rachel smiled before quietly silencing herself once again and observing quietly like the observer she was.

As Rachel did that, Makoto felt the imaginary red blade nick her at the cheek, causing blood to be drawn as she tched at that. '_**So it may be a fake but the damage is real... that's great.**_' Makoto thought as the fake Sora began to project from his stump a huge mass of energy that she could feel hit her through her chest and something deep inside. A huge mass of energy that she always understood was being Sora's drive as a fake arm manifested over where his real left arm was.

'_**In that case, How do you like this!**_' Makoto thought as she thrust her fist rapidly, landing a punch right at the Fake Sora's stomach as he went flying towards the ground, quickly recovering as he dashed forward only to immediately appear in front of her, as if the fake even knew how to use his drive. '_**Geez, talk about making a near perfect clone... if this was the old me, I would be shitting myself right now.**_' Makoto thought as she was glad that she was not the old her at that moment as she tightened her fists.

The Fake Sora began to thrust his knife several times right for Makoto's vitals, as if he was the real one who didn't hesitate to throw life threatening strikes towards his loved one to test her resolve and make sure she was ready for the trials ahead. Seeing that it was coming from the right arm, Makoto prepared herself to intercept one of the fake's stabs, weaving to the side as she grabbed the fake's arm hard before kicking it roughly, breaking it's grasp over the blade and allowing her to deliver a powerful punch right at the fake's face, sending it flying towards the wall.

"_**You know... If you are going to pretend being the real Sora, you've got to do a lot better than that!**_" Makoto yelled as she gestured with her fingers, unfazed by the attacks being thrown at her at that moment. The Fake Sora got himself off the wall and cracked it's neck several times as he stretched his right arm a few times to ensure the damage Makoto did was minimal before charging towards her once again, ignoring the usage of it's knife as he jabbed quickly, trying to throw her off in the process.

Makoto however was prepared for the nonsense being thrown in front of her, having seen it play out in her mind several times as she weaved her head left and right to dodge the attacks being thrown at her. She was too ready for the attacks being thrown at her, unfazed by the barrage of blows the fake was throwing as they lacked the impact the real one would have had. Even it's astral arm paled in comparison as she thrust her palms out, striking the fake right at it's shoulders to stop it's constant attacking.

"_**And unlike the old me... the old tricks that the Old Sora would have done won't work on me! So it's about damn time we ended this!**_" Makoto yelled as her fist began to charge up with energy, allowing her to feel the seithr flow around her fists. It must be because of Relius's tampering, but now that she could feel her soul screaming out of her body, it's like she's following the rhythm of her heart with her two fists and they were beginning to form a smooth tempo in the process.

As she threw a left, she could feel her right fist tension and ready itself for the next punch. As she allowed her right to flow, her left had returned to being rested and ready for another punch itself. Her breathing was now following a pattern. With every left punch, she would breathe in ever so lightly. With every right punch, she would exhale out. Her whole body was running as one as her fists were landing true to the Sora clone that was in front of with ease.

"_**It's time to end this!**_" Makoto screamed as she began to charge her fist with Seithr, creating a huge ars magus seal behind her as she lunged forward, gut punching the fake Sora at his stomach into the air while seithr continued to build within her fist. As he soared in the air, the seithr continued to build and Makoto felt every single inch of it as she got ready to throw her fist. "_**BIG BANG SMASH!**_" With a loud yell, Makoto threw her whole weight behind the punch, sending a massive astral fist right into the fake Sora and made him fly right into the walls of the structure she was in, causing dust to kick up as Makoto panted heavily, having expended more energy she had expected.

"_**YOU... YOU WANT SOME MORE HUH! HUH!**_" Makoto yelled, puffing her chest out a bit as the fake slumped on the wall, slowly turning itself to seithr as it looked at Makoto in the face before giving a bit of a soft smile. "**You pass Miss Nanaya...**" the fake said, vanishing in the process as the seithr flowed right into Makoto's face, hitting her in the eyes as she slowly blacked out in the process against her will, collapsing to the ground as Rachel walked up to the unconscious girl.

"**So that's it huh... The Makoto Nanaya we were talking to has now returned back to her timeline?**" Gil replied as Rachel nodded her head. "**Yes... let us follow suit. We have observed all there is needed to be observed in this timeline... we must make sure that the girl is guided to her next path.**" Rachel explained as soon, there was no trace of the gothic lolita girl as on the ground lied this world's Makoto Nanaya, oblivious to the adventure she had gone through...

* * *

**As Makoto Nanaya returned...back to reality**

* * *

Makoto felt so refreshed... as if she had been sleeping for a while. "**I need a drink...**" Makoto said as her body reached out for some sort of hydration to keep her body hydrated. As soon as her hand felt the familiar metal of a flask, she pulled it closer towards her and opened it, drinking and savoring the taste of alcohol that dripped into her lips as she realized what she was drinking at that moment, Opening her eyes as wide as they could as she sat up and took a couple of deep breathes.

"**I'm...back?**" Makoto asked herself as she quickly reached out for her work phone, pulling it out and seeing the messages that Hazama had sent her, detailing the objective she was originally sent for, which was to collect data as to why there were strange readings coming out from the ruins of Ibukido. She couldn't help but start crying... not because it was a message from her shitty boss but she was back...she was back at her timeline.

"**Sora!?..**" Makoto looked around for a bit, her mind briefly wondering if the white haired man was anywhere to be seen. "**If you are looking for him, then I must be the bearer of bad news. You will not find him here.**" Rachel said, spooking Makoto as she looked at the girl with some surprise in her eyes. "**You got to stop surprising people like that Rachel. I mean it must be nice and all teleporting here and there, but think of us normies please.**" Makoto replied as Rachel chuckled.

"**I apologize for surprising you...AHEM... normie. But I figured that a surprise is something you will need to wake up.**" Rachel explained as Makoto couldn't help but look at her weirdly when she said that. "**And you don't think that me being surrounded by stuff that I would recognize and being able to drink my alcohol again would not be surprise enough?**" Makoto asked as she took another sip of alcohol to cool down her nerves.

"**That is true...**" Rachel explained as many questions ran right through Makoto's mind. Just how on earth did she end up in that alternate reality in the first place? How long has passed since she was back at her reality? How did she still retain all of the memories of the adventures she had gone through. But finally, her mind settled down on one question that she needed answering. "**Rachel... I need to know... How do you know about Sora? You've gotten me back here, so I at least deserve to know how you got to know him.**" Makoto questioned as Rachel took a deep breath, knowing that question was coming up.

"**Remember when I said that the world has forgotten about Sora Minakaze? How his existence was erased from the world?**" Rachel explained as Makoto nodded her head. "**Well... Mr Minakaze interestingly has only one location where memories of him were not affected by the god in any manner... and that is the First Free Hierarchical city of Otsu.**" Rachel explained as Makoto couldn't help but widen her eyes hearing that.

The First Free Hierarchical city of Otsu... a city that Makoto was very familiar with. "**So you're telling me, this god had the ability to influence everyone in the world and their memories... but for some reason skipped over the city where Criminals are free to do whatever they wish?.. talk about selective much.**" Makoto commented as Rachel nodded her head. "**I understand that you would find that strange, I do too... But you must be at least glad that you have a location to start your search at.**" Rachel said as Makoto thought about what Rachel said and nodded her head.

"**I guess when you say it like that, that's a good thing. It gives me a start at least. But it may not be enough to go by since Sora would be most likely moving around all over the place. I may need to rely on other means to hopefully find the guy.**" Makoto said, her mind turning towards the thought of the means of contact that Kokonoe gave her to contact when she finally got back home. "**Still... It's good to know that there's one place in the world where Sora still exists...at least.**" Makoto said in relief as she drank her alcohol to that.

"**Still... How on Earth did I end up in a timeline like that in the first place?**" Makoto asked out loud, musing Rachel as she looked at the squirrel girl with interest. "**Do you want to know?**" Rachel asked as Makoto looked at her in surprise. "**Wait. You know why?**" Makoto asked as she hesitated a little to get that question answered. "**Is it going to be something crazy like souls and phenomena intervention again?**" Makoto questioned as Rachel chuckled.

"**It can be much simpler if you want, after all, the answer is here after all.**" Rachel said as Makoto couldn't believe what she was hearing. The answer to the question she was looking for was actually in the room, that sounds unbelievable. "**In that case, show it to me! I need to know how I got sent to that world in the first place! I kind of need to thank them for giving me the chance to regain my memories of Sora in the first place.**" Makoto said, scratching her head as Rachel took a small deep breath.

"**Take a look underneath that coffin.**" Rachel said, pointing her finger towards a row of coffins laid out in various ways, her finger specifically choosing the one that remain standing as Makoto couldn't help but gulp at that. Her answer lied within a series of coffins... that wasn't bizarre or strange at all. Makoto wanted to make a witty remark to help calm her nerves but knew that was unnecessary and that she should just get to it right now.

Her hands gripped tightly on the edges of the coffin, ready to reveal what was underneath as she took a couple of deep breathes. Without even hesitating to do so, Makoto ripped the lid off it's base and soon gasped in shock and horror at what was inside. She couldn't help but process what she was looking at as all of the words that came out of her mouth were that of shock and horror, followed with uncontrolled stuttering as she shook her head.

"**No... there's no way...**" Makoto stuttered in disbelief as her eyes locked at the sight of a woman that looked like Noel Vermillion, one of her closest friends as she looked at Rachel Alucard, her eyes demanding questions. "**That...Miss Nanaya... is a copy of one of your friends, Noel Vermillion, a failed copy made by Relius Clover himself.**" Rachel said as Makoto looked back at the copy with a stunned look on her face, unable to believe what she was seeing.

"**You're saying... He...made...!?**" as Makoto was about to finish her sentence, she quickly rushed up to one of the consoles that she used before and quickly checked the data to confirm Rachel's statement, confirming it by comparing the face of the girl in the coffin with the image on the screen. "**But...But why!? Why would he make so many girls to make Noel!?**" Makoto demanded as Rachel took a small breath and shook her head.

"**I do not know myself... you may have to ask him yourself. Though I must ask... what are you going to do now?**" Rachel questioned as Makoto took a bit of a quiet pause herself as she knew what Rachel was talking about. Truth after truth has been revealed to her, truths of the world that should be kept hidden away now in her hands. She had all the information in the world that she could work with and now she needed to decide what she has to do at that very moment. Taking a swig of alcohol, Makoto looked towards the horizon that was exposed to her.

"**I am going to fight like hell for my friends... even if it means fighting against the world itself.**" Makoto said, making Rachel smile as she nodded her head. "**There's that moxie coming out from you again, I do look forward to seeing where you go from here.**" Rachel said as Makoto turned around to say thanks to the gothic lolita but she was already gone, making Makoto smirk as she scratched her head and looked back at the row of coffins, bowing down in respect before resealing the lid on one of the failed Noel clones as her head felt a gentle pulse of warmth, making her smile as she made her way out of the fallen NOL base.

As she did so, the signal was starting to become more clear for her as her phone began to vibrate as she answered it without thinking. "**Oh there you are Miss Nanaya! I am glad I finally managed to get into contact with you!**" A voice she dreaded hearing, Hazama's voice said as Makoto couldn't help but remain quiet. "**Is something the matter? How is the mission I sent you coming along? It has been a while since we last spoke but I didn't think you were this tardy.**" Hazama commented as Makoto took a deep breath.

* * *

Makoto: **You can drop the nice guy act Hazama, I know you for the asshole you are.**

Hazama: **Huh? What are you talking about now? You must have hit your head on something hard.**

Makoto:** I am not going to waste your time nor mine. I have known about you and your weird shit for a while now. I can confirm that now after seeing your shitty personality for my eyes.**

Hazama: **Oh my, did I do something to warrant your anger? I don't understand why you are angry with me right now.**

Makoto:** It's alright if you want to play dumb, I can handle that. Just so you know, I am not going to let you boss me around anymore... Boss.**

* * *

As Makoto hung up on Captain Hazama, she took a look at her phone as she noticed the date on her phone. "**The 1****st**** of January 2****200... talk about a brand new century...**" Makoto commented as her eyes finally were blinded by the light of Ibukido as she took a couple of deep breathes, breathing in the air of her own timeline. There laid a few choices in front of her, she needed to find Sora and make sure he was doing alright, she also needed to find Noel and Tsubaki and make sure that they were alright. Regardless, she needed to find her friends and she knew the person to do that.

* * *

**...Professor Kokonoe, I hope you are able to help me with this...**

* * *

As Makoto hung up on Captain Hazama, Hazama himself couldn't help but feel a sense of frustration as he bit his lip, realizing which version of Makoto he was talking to. "**T****he cocky little son of a bitch... thinks she's hot shit just because she beats up Relius Clover... Well I'll show her when I get my hands on her.**" Relius grumbled as his door was knocked upon as he looked at the door, quickly recomposing himself as he cleared his throat. "**Come in. I am available right now.**" Hazama said politely, maintaining an aura of politeness in front of him as the door opened.

"**I see that you have sent the Yayoi girl on her way to Kagutsuchi.**" A voice came from the door as Hazama sighed. "**Of course I did Relius... though unfortunately this time, she's got company with her, the kind of company that I really am wondering why she decided to go along.**" Hazama complained as Relius made his entrance, his gold opera mask covering his emotions once again as he chuckled. "**Why even complain Hazama? This timeline has provided us with lots of crucial data for our goals.**" Relius continued as Hazama rubbed his forehead.

"**Yeah... like being the fucking timeline where that squirrel chick you experimented on comes from.**" The moment that Hazama said that, a glint appeared on Relius's eyes as he knew what he was talking about. "**Did she say where she was heading towards? I must go and see her right away.**" Relius questioned, his attention fully went towards Makoto as Hazama sighed at this sudden interest. "**I don't even know man, she hung up before she even gave the location of where she was going to next... first the whole continuum shift with Noel Vermillion and Ragna the Bloodedge and now this whole Makoto mess, this timeline sucks!**" Hazama complained as he slumped himself on his desk.

Relius however ignored the plight of his green haired friend as he couldn't help but smile at the possibility presented in front of him. Finally, after having gone through so many timelines since meeting the perfect Makoto Nanaya for his own works, he has finally met up with her again. The things he could do once he gains her soul were endless, and he couldn't help but smile some more. "**Regardless of what you are saying Hazama, keep me updated on where Miss Nanaya whereabouts are, I want to be there as soon as possible.**" Relius said as he soon took his leave, leaving Hazama all alone as he slumped deeper down on his desk.

Here he was, dealing with the aftermath of what was essentially a shit show of an event. Ragna the Bloodedge has just been pulled out of the cauldron by Noel Vermillion, beginning the continuum shift where the gods can now observe whatever they wish. And now here he finds out that the Makoto Nanaya he had met in another timeline, whose gotten the interest of his weird masked friend is actually a part of this timeline and now acting on her own. He knew he had to get down to Kagutsuchi himself and start trying to fix shit together... and there was only one other thing that rung in his mind.

* * *

**...Can this day get any worse?..**

* * *

As we cut away from Makoto Nanaya and Hazama, in an airship riding along the skies, a man sat down on his chair sipping a cup of water, his large coat hiding his whole body except for his legs as he took a sip of fine wine. A waitress approaches him, her uniform top undone a bit to expose some cleavage as she leaned closer to the man in a seductive manner. "**Is that all you are drinking today or will you prefer to have something to eat as well?**" The woman asked as the man placed his cup of wine down and raised his hand to refuse politely.

"**It's alright, I am working today. In any other case, can you tell me if we are approaching closer to Kagutsuchi?**" the man asked politely, keeping the hood covered over his head as the air stewardess smiled. "**We are approaching at least a few more miles before Kagutsuchi. Are you taking the express exit?**" The stewardess asked as the man simply nodded his head. "**If that is the case, I would ask for you to please see yourself to the closest exit. I will bring for you your luggage.**" the stewardess said as the man undid his seat belt, walking past the crowds of men and women seated on their seats with fancy jewelry and outfits.

This was not your ordinary flight in your ordinary airlines. This was Otsu air, a privately owned airlines of the Otsunian government designed for their own citizens. And the citizens who were seated in this aircraft were not your ordinary citizens but criminals who were taking their leave from Otsu to partake in normal activities in the Hierarchical cities. To them, this was their vacation from their criminal activities but for the man in the cloak, he was heading to Kagutsuchi for business.

"**Good luck down there. I heard that since that beam of light nearly annihilated Kagutsuchi the NOL's stepped up security.**" One of the wealthy criminals spoke to the man in the cloak, knowing who it was underneath and why he was heading towards the express exit. "**And you should too. Don't do anything that would get Otsu in trouble now.**" The man in the cloak retorted as the criminal laughed before his woman pulled him closer as a necklace jingled from the cloaked man's neck as he continued to make his way towards the express exit, where the stewardess waited for him with his luggage in her hands.

"**Your luggage sir.**" the stewardess said as what was in her hands was no ordinary bag of luggage but instead, a small sword in the shape of a messer, a Germanic sword in the shape of a knife. The weapon itself looked strange as it had a motorcycle handle and brake attached to it instead of the normal wrappings one would find in a sword as the man picked it up from the woman with his right hand. "**Thank you madam, I hope you didn't find it too heavy?**" The cloaked man asked as the woman shook her head and opened the door, revealing what seemed to be a cockpit of sorts.

"**Of course not, I handle heavy luggage for a living. Now if you would kindly step inside the pod.**" The woman gestured as the cloaked man obliged, having the woman seat belt him in as she smiled while holding the door closed. "**Thank you for flying with Otsu Air, I hope to see you again, Mr Miracle Bringer.**" The stewardess said, closing the door as the cloaked man smiled before bracing himself to the tiny chamber's walls as an outer view of the airship reveals what is going to happen next.

A ball begins to roll out of the airship itself, flying out of the airship in rapid speed as the airship continued to fly away from Kagutsuchi. Inside this ball contained the cloaked man as it descended rapidly towards the ground, cratering in the process as trees and the ground gave way, parting in the process as the cloaked man opened the chute, revealing to him that he had just landed himself right into the dense forests that surrounded Kagutsuchi, the hierarchical city he was going to have to make his way towards.

"_**Well... wasn't expecting a smoother landing than what I got. Still had to admit, was a lot better than before.**_" the cloaked man said to himself as he decided to pull down his cloak, revealing his face to the world as he only wore the cloak inside the airship because it felt comfortable and now that the wind was blowing so nicely on his face, he couldn't help but pull his hood down to get more air.

As he did so, his white hair began to flow nicely with the wind, causing his bangs to part a little, revealing the blond tips that were on the ends of his hair. His hair had grown a bit longer so he had the rest of his hair tied into a small ponytail that wasn't too big. He had a small cut present that went across his right eye but he didn't mind as that eye was already blind so it was more visual appeal as he saw it. His yellow left eye shone as brightly as he did as he let out a small yawn, taking in all of his surroundings.

"_**Alright Sora... you've got a few miles ahead of you before you reach Kagutsuchi. Might as well make sure to get in some practice swings before meeting up with the target.**_" the cloaked man, now known as Sora Minakaze himself said as he loosened his cloak, revealing that what he was wearing underneath was a simple run down hakama with loose cut pants and a pair of dirty black boots, a simple piece of attire that suited Sora no matter the destination he chose.

As he picked up his giant knife and placed it on his hip, he couldn't help but tap on the blade slightly for good luck as he smiled towards Kagutsuchi. He had always wanted to come to this place and see what it was all about and the job he was at was the excuse he needed to stay in the city for a few days. "_**Alright Kagutsuchi, let's see if you are as interesting as all those travel itineraries try to make you **__**be**_." Sora said to himself, stretching his right arm into the air as he began to take his first few steps towards the city...

* * *

**...Unaware of the threads of fate that are beginning to spin around him...**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING TODAY!? And finally Sora Minakaze has made his appearance in the story. I know I have been doing a lot of cock teasing about the guy and here he is. As to what has happened to his life since you guys last saw him? Well, I will say that it's better to keep on reading to see more tidbits on this guy's life because it's no fun to spoil the surprise now.**

**Just a few things I would let you guys know. Firstly, the semester has begun for me and it's starting to look really busy like usual, so if there are months where I can only give you guys at least 1 chapter a month, I hope you all can understand. But I will make sure to let you guys know so you guys aren't left out of the loop. Secondly, I have noticed a growing interest in lemon content, particularly for Sora and Makoto. Now I understand we all want to see them have their time under the bed but I am just not sure where to place this content. Do you guys want to see it as seperate from the story as it's own series of chapters? Or will you all prefer to see the lemon in the chapters themselves at the expense of the story becoming Mature because well.. it's the bed talk. Leave your thoughts down on the reviews or private message me about it. Your feedback will help.**

**And finally we are starting the story from the Continuum Shift point of the Blazblue story if you guys have noticed. The reason for this is simple. It's really easy to insert a character during this point during the story and also gives me flexibility to write the chapters the way I wanted. Also if I can be frank, Nothing much really happens in Calamity Trigger besides the climax and I want to get into the interesting bits as soon as possible.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT IN OUR STORY!? JUST WHAT IS SORA DOING IN KAGUTSUCHI!? JUST WHAT KIND OF BUSINESS IS HE UNDER!? IS IT THE KIND OF SHADY BUSINESS ONLY OTSUNIANS ARE KNOWN FOR DOING OR SOMETHING ELSE ENTIRELY!? AND JUST WHAT IS HE GOING TO DO IN OTSU!? Well... just sit back because a whole new chapter of Blazblue has just begun and you all are in it for the ride.**


	10. Canon 9: The Wind's Goal

(A New Canon has begun! And we now start the journey of Sora Minakaze in this world. Just what is going to happen to him next!?)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 9

The 13th Hierarchical City of Kagutsuchi, A city famous for housing one of the largest Kakan populations in the world and for being a cultural boiling pot. When Sora walked through the checkpoint, the first thing his eyes were greeted to were the various signs of a language he did not recognize as he thought he had been teleported to another world. '_**Well now... this is totally new.**_' Sora said to himself as he was a complete stranger to a land like this.

Sora Minakaze himself is here for a short job but otherwise, this is a vacation for him. For the past few years since he left the NOL, he's been travelling around the world as he pulled out a small diary and taking a look at his previous travels. '_**I better make sure to leave a spot for Kagutsuchi, once I do that job for the heads.**_' Sora thought as he kept his diary and began to walk. Once he did so, he couldn't help but notice a couple of eyes looking his way as he decided to stroll his way into an alleyway as soon, multiple figures began to surround him.

"**Well Well Well, look what we got here, Fresh meat!**" A punk said as Sora couldn't help but look around his surroundings as he realized they blocked the entrances of the alley. "**You must be new to Kagutsuchi. How about you pay us to give you a tour? Well, judging from your rags, I doubt that you have enough cash to pay out fare.**" The punk continued as Sora couldn't help but begin to yawn at how routine they were being.

"**So...maybe there's something else you can do to pay...**" But before the punk could finish his sentence, Sora immediately dashed forward and swung his motorcycle blade right into the man's stomach, not cutting him as it was unusually blunt but caused severe pain as Sora placed the blade on his shoulder. "**I don't need to hear the same routine again, come and get me if you want.**" Sora taunted as the punks looked at each other before charging right towards Sora as he closed his eyes and began to focus.

Soon, Sora bobbed his head away from an attempted punch and quickly retaliated with a pommel strike from the blade as he did a quick kick to dispose of another that was about to attack him. Two punks then charged right at him as he didn't even hesitate to swing his blunt blade right into their chests, knocking the wind out of them as they staggered up to their feet. "**Come on now, if you are going to try and stick up someone, the least you can do is try to show some fight.**" Sora taunted as a couple of the punks got up to their feet and one of them managed to grab his cloak.

Sora, unfazed by what the punk was trying to do, simply lowered his head, discarding the cloak and allowing the punks to see that the person they were trying to stick up was missing an arm. "**OH COME ON GUYS! HE'S MISSING AN ARM FOR GOD'S SAKE! LET'S TAKE HIM DOWN ALREADY!**" The punk shouted in frustration as Sora's eyes flickered silver for a moment as he could see the frustrated punk charge up to him. As he did so, an image began to appear in Sora's mind of him taking what is a very predictable punch as Sora didn't even try to dodge the attack and raised his blade to intercept.

As soon as he did that, the punk's fist collided with the blade, causing him to lurch in pain as Sora tossed him the blade right at him, forcing the punk to catch it and be suddenly taken aback by how heavy it was as he dropped straight to the ground, leaving himself vulnerable as Sora ran up to him and delivered a powerful running knee right onto the punk's jaw, flooring him as Sora kicked his blade into the air and effortlessly catch it.

"**Anyone else eager for a beating?**" Sora questioned as the punks looked rather reluctant to charge at him, now seeing what he was capable of doing. However Sora was not feeling merciful as this is a regular occurrence in Otsu and if you didn't make sure that your attackers were on the ground, they could stab you in the back without warning as soon as you turn around. "**Fine then, time to finish this I guess.**" Sora said as he held onto the motorcycle handle of his blade tightly and slowly twisted, revving it as a sound could be heard as soon as he did that.

"**ENHANCED GEAR!**" The blade shouted as the punks slowly walked back, fearful of what is going to happen next as the lights around the street flickered for a moment and a strange gas began to emerge out of the blade as Sora revved the blade again. "**DISTORTION GEAR!**" The blade shouted as the lights flickered again, alarming the punks as Sora placed his two fingers right on the motorcycle brake attached to the blade as the blade surged with seithr when he did so. "**DISTORTION FINISH!**" The blade shouted as the men realized what was going on.

"**RUN YOU STUP...**" But before they could finish their sentence, Sora immediately swung his blade forward, sending a massive wave of seithr blasting towards them as the group of punks found themselves being thrown out of the alley and into the street where they began to run for their dear lives as Sora looked at the blade and whistled. "_**Wow... talk about a tune up Caroline. The Rev Blade's running better than ever.**_" Sora said to himself as he walked up to the man he had rendered unconscious and took his wallet for himself, taking out some cash before tossing it back at the man.

"_**That will teach you for randomly ambushing people you shouldn't be messing with.**_" Sora said as he sheathed the rev blade back on his hip as he stretched his arm for a bit before looking at his left stump. While normally it would be visible, the stump was currently being hidden by a pair of machinery secured to the stump itself as Sora checked up on it. "_**Well, at least those idiots didn't damage the **__**device**__**. Still... where's the NOL when you need them.**_" Sora said to himself as he walked back out of the street and looked around to see if there was any NOL troops walking around.

Nobody... Nobody from the NOL he could see from miles in any direction. '_**So the rumors of NOL disappearing in Kagutsuchi are true... thank god for the head's info.**_' Sora thought as he decided that it would be best to quickly head towards the meeting location otherwise he would be wasting time he could be using to actually explore Kagutsuchi, as Sora's mind thought of a few days ago in Otsu where he met with the Otsu heads...

* * *

**...Where they had to ask him for a favour...**

* * *

**FLASHBACK**

* * *

It was another snowy day in Otsu and a day before the new year. Recent news over Akitsu-Ko's weather issues due to Ragna the Bloodedge's rampage of the Akitsu Ko NOL headquarters and destroying the cauldron itself have reached Otsu. While everyone in Akitsu-Ko struggled to cope with the weather fluctuation, everyone in Otsu treated it like it was any normal day, just with more snow as Sora waded his way through the snow which had buried it's way up to his knees.

"_**God damn Ko, bringing in their snow to Otsu.**_" Sora grumbled, more angry over the fact that Ko couldn't keep their weather issues away from Otsu rather than the Otsunian weather itself as he noticed a young child trying to run away from an old man he had robbed from as the two of them struggled their way through the snow in comedic fashion. "**GET BACK HERE YOU RABBLEROUSER WITH MY WALLET!**" The old man yelled as he stabbed his cane through the snow, using it as a support to prevent himself from sinking into the snow.

"**EAT MY SHORTS LOSER!**" The kid yelled as the kid struggled to move through the thick, dense snow as Sora couldn't help but laugh at the daily occurrences of Otsu as he heard gunshots occur in front of him as a couple of men dressed sharply in suits and fedora hats walked out of a store as they noticed Sora and tipped their fedoras to him as they got on their getaway vehicle and drove off, leaving Sora to look through the store that they had riddled their bullets into.

"**MY STORE! YOU DAMNED MAFIA!**" The shopkeeper shouted from the rubble of his store as Sora simply sighed and looked at him. "**You do know that if you don't pay the protection money they are just going to trash your place again and again till they get sick of it and just off you?**" Sora questioned as the store keeper looked at him. "**Oh! Mr Miracle Bringer! Yeah I know but it's just...the family you know.**" The shop keeper said as Sora sighed and pulled out his wallet, pulling out a single note and placing it on the man's hands.

"**Here's some cash for the store damages, just get it fixed and get back to work. That's the Otsunian way after all.**" Sora said as the shop keeper simply nodded his head and took the cash graciously. "**You truly are a nice guy Miracle Bringer, would wonder what we would do without you.**" The shop keeper said as Sora was already on his way to his destination. "**You would be just fine, after all. Otsunians find a way.**" Sora said as the shop keeper couldn't help but smile at those words before nearly fainting at the 1 million Blaybloo note that Sora had given him.

As Sora left the carnage behind him, he made it his focus to get to his destination as soon he managed to do so, staring at the entrance of the Midnight Cat which now looked much more modern, something more of a proper pub instead of the run down place it originally looked as thanks to Otsu's efforts to secure their freedom, the owner managed to illegally make a couple of renovation permits and have the place spruced up in the first place as Sora opened the door, ringing the door bell as a big toothy grin greeted him.

"**NYAHAHAH! HOW YOU BEEN SORA!**" A kakan greeted him as Sora smiled and entered the building. "**I have been good Pikaka, I am guessing with the latest renovation up front that business has been going well for you?**" Sora asked as the Kakan known as Pikaka smiled, grinning with pride as she walked towards her bar happily. "**OF COURSE! BUSINESS HAS BEEN BOOMING LIKE CRAZY! SO! Can I interest you with one of my specialty drinks?**" Pikaka asked as Sora smiled and took a seat.

"**Sure, give me your recommendation. And also tell me how Derrick and Neko are doing right now?**" Sora smiled as Pikaka smiled and whipped out a bottle of whiskey and gin and began to mix a couple of drinks randomly. Soon, Sora was presented with a weird concoction of a drink he has never seen before as he picked it up and looked at the glass weirdly. "**So... care to tell me what's the name of this drink?**" Sora questioned as Pikaka grinned.

"**This is my special Kakan Justice Punch! Go on! Try it!**" Pikaka said as Sora took a sip of the drink, tasting the high amounts of Vodka, Gin and whiskey flowing through the drink as Sora couldn't help but smile at the sour after tastes that the lime was able to provide. "**It's a good drink don't get me wrong, it's just you might kill someone with this alcohol content.**" Sora commented as Pikaka laughed greatly.

"**Well it's a drink only you can drink after all! It has over 100 percent alcohol so if I gave this to a customer... THEY WOULD DIE FROM ALCOHOL POISONING NYAHAHAHAHA!**" Pikaka laughed as Sora couldn't help but laugh along with her as he had to agree. Thanks to a unique drinking condition he has, he can drink heavy amounts of alcohol as if they were nothing as he downed the whole drink in one gulp before looking at Pikaka with a smile. "**So... going to tell me about Derrick and Neko now Pikaka?**" Sora questioned again as Pikaka smiled.

"**Derrick's been busy in the kitchen. I have been whipping him up like a slave so he has been cooking good for for the bar! Neko's becoming quite popular working as a waitress here too so it's not all too bad!**" Pikaka said as Sora smiled at that. "**So, are they in today or did you finally give them a break you slave driver.**" Sora said as Pikaka laughed hard, slapping Sora at his back. "**Of course I did! I am not cruel to family! Only to those that need to be disposed off!**" Pikaka said, grinning wide as Sora knew not to ask any further.

"**So besides those two... what about the other guests?**" Sora asked as before Pikaka could answer for him, a throat clearing was heard. "**We are just waiting her for you Mr Minakaze.**" A voice called as Sora turned around and noticed on the big round table four figures seated on the chair as Sora took the refill of his drink from the bar and brought it towards the table. "**So... how is everyone doing?**" Sora asked as he looked at the four individuals in front of him.

* * *

**...Wondering what kind of job he's got in front of him...**

* * *

**SORA POV**

* * *

As I took the seat in front of me, I couldn't help but look at the four people who had hired me for a job that they say needs my delicate touch for some reason. The four people in front of me are the ones who run Otsu from the deepest depths to it's political scene. These four are often called the four heads of Otsu, because of the power they wield, both legally and illegally. "**It's good to see that you made on time Mr Minakaze. Any longer and we would have had to start sending our men to find you.**" A spectacled man said as he pushed his glasses closer to his face.

"**I know Tetsu, You have always been a man who highly favours time.**" I said as I looked at Tetsu with a straight face. Tetsu of the Yakuza faction, a strict man of few words and all business. Some people have tried to speculate what he does for fun but Tetsu himself makes it near impossible to predict such things. "**And also, I would not like to have my house trashed by your men again thanks.**" I replied, as the memory of his Yakuza squad storming into my house when I went out to get something ringed in my mind.

"**OH DON'T BE SO HARSH ON HIM COMRADE! WE CAN TRUST COMRADE MINAKAZE AFTER ALL!**" A loud Russian man shouted as he slapped him right at Tetsu's back. "**Of course you can trust me Vlad. I mean we both have been working with each other for some time now, I was kind of expecting for you guys to trust me by now.**" I replied as I looked at the 7 foot muscular man in front of me as he took a swig of Vodka as if he was drinking a glass of water.

"**OF COURSE WE CAN TRUST EACH OTHER MR MINAKAZE! I AM JUST TRYING TO HELP LOOSEN COMRADE TETSU UP OVER HERE!**" Vlad shouted as Tetsu simply and in a calm manner slapped Vlad back to his seat as I couldn't help but scratch my head at that. Vlad's the leader of a group of mercenaries that have made Otsu their home. They are different from most mercenaries as they chose to offer their services to petty criminals instead of participating in wars, saying that is the next step to expanding their business.

"**I am alright Vlad, I don't need you telling me to calm down.**" Tetsu said sternly as Vlad couldn't stop grinning as he took his seat and swigged more of his Vokda. As he did so, a rather young woman leaned over the desk, drinking a glass of whiskey despite her being underage. "**We can't really calm down right now Vlad, especially since we have a big problem on our hands.**" The girl said as she adjusted her tie on her slick black suit, her fedora tipped a little bit towards the right as Sora could sense the seriousness that was coming out from her voice.

"**And I am guessing that this problem involves all four heads Sofia?**" I questioned as the blond 15 year old girl looked at me in the eyes, her eyes not intimidated by my presence. "**Why yes, we wouldn't be inviting you here if this problem didn't involve us and in an extension to you.**" Sofia explained as she cleared her throat. Sofia is the youngest daughter of the Otsu Mafia, forced to take the reins of her family when the former head, her father, and her brothers were killed in a calculated strike by NOL troops while on business. Sofia survived because she didn't partake in the business trip but now rules the mafia with the same iron fist her father had.

"**Of couse Sofia. I understand the seriousness of the situation if you are calling for me. What's going on?**" I asked as Sofia took a deep breath before pulling out a series of files for me to start reading. "**A few weeks ago, we were given a job by Sector Seven. You know the science group that doesn't really see eye to eye with the NOL?**" Sofia questioned as I nodded my head. "**I am sort of familiar with them, what happened with them?**" I questioned as I noticed even Vlad of all people became a bit serious as Sofia continued her explanation.

"**It's simple really, they asked us to help them get information and transfer the information we collect to them. So when our men start disappearing from these transfers, we cannot help but start to ****suspect we are being fucked with**." Sofia explained as now things were starting to click. "**So you're suspecting that Sector Seven is killing your couriers and taking the info for themselves.**" I deduced as they nodded their heads. "**If that's not bad enough, yesterday, someone tried to hack into our servers to delete the info we have been working so hard to collect for Sector Seven off our hard drives. Thank god for Caroline and the group of hackers we got ****because they ****managed to stop the delet****e**** and preserved the data.**" Sofia continued as I couldn't help but scratch my head not because I was confused but wondering why.

* * *

Me: **So you're telling me that attack is also done by Sector Seven to try and cover their tracks as well?**

Sofia: **We don't know if it's Sector Seven or the NOL or some random jackass, we are starting to get pissed that we are being underestimated and we need you to handle things.**

Tetsu: **We have been in talks with Sector Seven and they have arranged for a final meet to give all of the data we have to them. Obviously, they are going to just try and kill the courier again**

Vlad: **As much as I would like to send my men again to deliver this information. I suspect they are sending someone of great combat capability to these meetings because none of my men have come back. I don't like that at all...**

Me: **And thus, you want me of all people to go to this meeting and make sure that Sector Seven isn't going to try something funny?**

* * *

"**Why yes... and if they are responsible for doing so... teaching them a lesson on fucking with Otsunians.**" the final person finally spoke as her long black hair covered her right ear as she brushed the fringe of her hair to the left as she wore a seductive china dress which had a boob window that exposed the top of her breasts. "**Of course you want me to do that too Zhang Pi. You guys sure know how to work someone down like a slave driver**." I joked as the heads gave me a glare at my direction as I smiled.

"**Of course I am happy to take this job for you guys, give me the details right now and I can start preparing for the mission ahead.**" I said with eagerness as it has been a while since I have left Otsu. The last trip I took has almost been a month now and while Otsu is a nice city to stay in, I need to keep expanding my horizons otherwise I would feel a bit stilted. The heads grinned towards my direction as they took the files I was looking through before and slid me another pair of documents for me to start reading

"**Firstly, the meeting will be taking place at the 13****th**** Hierarchical city of Kagutsuchi. NOL presence there has been low lately, making it a perfect location for us to organize a meeting.**" Zhang Pi explained as I leaned in closer and looked at the document presented to me, opening and noticing a pink haired cat girl's picture attached to the file. "**So I am guessing the pink haired girl is the Sector Seven client in question?**" I asked as I couldn't help but pick up the picture and wonder who on earth this person was.

"**Yes... that is Professor Kokonoe A Mercury. Daughter to the great sage Nine. I am guessing you did not know who she is?**" Tetsu asked as I thought about it for a few seconds. "**Nope... she draws blanks in my mind. You guys know that I don't really give a fuck about people I don't know.**" I said frankly as Vlad chuckled lightly. "**That's good to know. When people usually hear about her, they shit their pants!**" Vlad said, drinking more Vokda before Pikaka gave him another bottle to drink some more.

"**So I am guessing the person I am meeting is going to be a contact of hers?**" I asked as Tetsu nodded his head. "**Yes, Unfortunately with all the dead couriers, we have been unable to identify who he is, so you're going in blind on info this time around. Not like that has stopped you before.**" Tetsu said as he couldn't help but give me a stone cold stare as I smiled back at him and took a sip of my drink. "**Of course Tetsu, If I let a lack of info stop me, I wouldn't be able to fight to my fullest.**" I said as I stood up, getting ready to prepare myself for what is to come.

"**I would recommend not going easy on the contact. The prof has been fucking with us and it's time we gave her a taste of her own medicine. With a side of an Otsunian right hook.**" Sofia said, sipping her whiskey as I scratched my head a bit. "**I am just curious though, that is your first glass of Whiskey right? And you three are watching to make sure she's not overdoing it right?**" I asked as Sofia couldn't help but look a bit pissed but Zhang Pi stopped her.

"**Of course we are. Just think of this as Sofia's growing up phase. She's got to grow into her new head position after all.**" Zhang Pi explained as I nodded my head understanding that. "**Well that's good to know... In any other case, I better head back and start my preparations for this meeting. I expect the payment to be made after the job's done and also I will be in Kagutsuchi for a while after the job's done. Heard it's a pretty city and want to see it myself.**" I said as the four heads smiled at me.

"**Of course Comrade! We will make sure Pikaka receives your cut and also book your flight with Otsu Air to Kagutsuchi. I am sure you will be able to find your way back here.**" Vlad said as I smiled and turned around only to remember something important. "**Also, I still have my favor with you guys right?**" I asked as silence greeted me for a moment. "**Of course Mr Minakaze, We never betray someone who's been so generous with their aid for us. Just give any of us a call and we will make it happen.**"

I couldn't help but smile at that as I began to walk away from the table to head outside. As my hand touched the knob I heard a whistle come from the table as I turned my head towards the four heads of Otsu as Sofia cleared her throat. "**Make sure you do us proud. 5****th**** head.**" Sofia said, trying to keep the proper titles in order as I scratched my head for a bit. "**Of course. I promise to not disappoint you guys.**" I said with a small smile on my face as I left the bar, making sure to leave Pikaka a tip as I knew where to head next... Home where a certain person is working on the weapon that has become his trusted companion...

* * *

**...The Rev Blade...**

* * *

As Sora continued to let his mind wonder about how he got here to Kagutsuchi, he looked up and saw that he was already at the location where he was supposed to meet with the Sector Seven agent responsible for transferring information. "_**Well... I guess that thought will have to wait for a while.**_" Sora said to himself as he checked on the Rev Blade, revving it a few times and looking around while he did so as the ars magus lights flickered with each rev he made as gasses erupted out of vents carefully engraved throughout the blade.

His hand soon hovered above one of these vents but no heat struck his hand when he did so, in fact he felt no kind of temperature but just pure wind blowing through his fingertips as he grinned. '_**At least Caroline made sure the blade's working better than ever. Hopefully if things do go south, I have that other **__**thing**__** to rely on.**_' Sora thought as he sheathed the Rev Blade, pulling up his cloak as he walked into the museum and right past the ticket master who had already been paid off to let this deal happen.

"_**So... the deal's taking place at the dinosaur exhibit and the password's Ree... let's just make sure that things don't go too south now.**_" Sora said to himself as he made sure that his cloak hid his weapon underneath so that he can stealthily reach for it. As he waited at the dinosaur exhibit, he made sure he was waiting at the T-Rex exhibit so he would stand out a bit more. His eyes darted left and right, making sure he kept his surroundings in check.

Soon, his eyes landed on a particularly interesting person as he stood out quite a lot with his red skin and massive frame. His round small glasses didn't fit his massive appearance as Sora couldn't help but walk towards the person and look at him a bit seriously. "**Well Well. You look interesting indeed.**" Sora said, not realizing that he was talking to the Red Devil, Iron Tager himself as Tager looked at the young man right in the eyes as he felt his instincts tell him to be careful.

"**T-Thanks? I guess that is good to know.**" Tager said, confused as to why this white haired man was not intimidated by him... in fact, he looked like he didn't even know who he was at all. "**So... are you the Sector Seven contact that I am supposed to meet up with?**" Sora asked, not even trying to hide his question in a sentence as Tager looked around and noticed the various eyes in the museum just ignore the two of them as he realized that this man was the contact he needed to talk to.

"**What's the password?**" Tager asked as Sora cleared his throat. "**Ree.**" Sora replied quickly as Tager nodded his head, registering the order that was given to him as he looked at Sora in the eyes. "**Do you have the info that we requested for?**" Tager questioned as Sora reached out for his pocket and pulled out a drive for Tager to get. "**That's all of the info you guys need. Am I free to go now?**" Sora questioned as Tager raised his hand.

"**Please wait for a moment, I need to make sure the contents of this drive are correct.**" Tager said as he inserted the drive into a bank that he started to scan using a device installed within his massive gauntlets. Sora scratched his head as he felt a tension rise in the air as he couldn't help but place his hand on the Rev Blade. "**What's your name by the way. I feel bad not knowing who you are with a physique like that. You must be pretty famous.**" Sora said, trying to start a conversation as Tager remained quiet for a bit before answering the question.

"**Iron Tager. That's my name. I also go by the name Red Devil if you want.**" Tager said as Sora nodded his head, treating him as if he was a nobody and that made him feel tense. It's never the people who fear you that made him feel tense. It's the people who treat you like you don't mean anything that made him feel tense as Tager soon confirmed the contents of the drive as a secret comm activated on Tager's ear.

"**The data's there, ****Take him out and make sure to dispose of the body when you are done****.**" Kokonoe said as Tager did not like what he was doing. Still, orders are orders. And he needed to eliminate the person in front of him... Sora could feel the tension rise up into the air as without warning, Tager tried to attack him with a quick and painless slap from his hands, intending to give Sora a quick death. However Sora immediately blocked the attack that was tossed his way and deflected it to the side with the Rev Blade, his eyes immediately sharpening to a deep glare.

"**So... you are going to try and kill me huh...**" Sora said as Tager couldn't help but not be surprised. This person that was in front of him was a different person he was handling as he turned on his comms. "**Professor... that order is going to take a while. Permission to enter combat?**" Tager questioned as Sora looked at him with a small smile. "**Well... we might as well not waste time anymore and get this show on the road. I hope you are ready Red Devil... Because I am not holding back.**" Sora said.

* * *

**...As The Red Devil prepared himself to face off against the Miracle Bringer himself...**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING IN THIS FINE DAY!? BECAUSE I AM DOING JUST FINE!? Well to be fair, I mean in spirit and mentally because assignments are starting to swim in and I better make sure that I start doing them. So here's this early chapter for you all to read and enjoy. I am just happy that people are enjoying the content that I am creating and posting for you all and hope that I can keep on living on your expectations for me.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT FOR SORA MINAKAZE!? HOW WILL SORA MINAKAZE FARE AGAINST IRON TAGER!? CAN HE STAND UP TO THE RED DEVIL HIMSELF!? AND JUST WHAT KIND OF WEAPON IS THE REV BLADE IN THE FIRST PLACE AND WHO IS IT'S CREATOR CAROLINE!? Well... read on if you dare and I hope you stay tuned in for what is to come next.**


	11. Canon 10: The Power Of Crime

(A NEW CANON HAS ARRIVED AND SORA MINAKAZE IS UP AGAINST THE RED DEVIL OF SECTOR SEVEN! THIS WILL MOST DEFINITELY BE AN INTERESTING FIGHT.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 10

Previously on Canon Distortion

Sora Minakaze had just arrived in the 13th Hierarchical City of Kagutsuchi and was making his way towards the Kagutsuchi Museum to do a job for the 4 heads of Otsu. The job? Pass some information to Sector Seven who has been killing the couriers they have been sending. When Sora came face to face with the Red Devil, Iron Tager, it didn't take long for things to suddenly break out into a fight. And thus, both Sora Minakaze and Iron Tager are ready to clash with each other.

And now, The Canon Continues.

* * *

The Kagutsuchi Museum. Often considered by the Kagutsuchi Tourism board as a location that people need to visit but the locals don't really know why. Normally, it's empty halls would be home to dust and the occasional security guard patrolling around and making sure trouble was not being caused. Today however, trouble was being caused as Sora thrusted himself towards Tager with his Rev Blade, barely nicking the Red Devil's chest as the man barely got out of the way.

'_**The Red Devil's a slow ass man.**_' Sora thought as Tager's feet touched the ground, creating a small crater in the process. '_**But he's one bulky boy. That means he can take a lot of abuse.**_' Sora thought as Tager felt a sense of danger coming out of Sora as he noticed through his small round glasses the seriousness in Sora's eyes. "**Kokonoe, I would like any information you can give me on this man I am facing right now.**" Tager asked secretly through his comms where Kokonoe, from the safety of her lab's screens, was able to see everything that was happening at that moment.

"**Trying to find that info for you right now, for now just engage basic combat protocol. Secure the weapon he's using and take him down from there**." Kokonoe said as she began to comb through any database for information she can use against Sora, even diving into top secret NOL information to do so as Tager had his orders and began to go to work. As Sora attempted another thrust, Sora noticed the gauntlets begin to charge up with electricity as he was forced to block a sweeping attack that Tager made for his feet, causing that electricity to flow through the rev blade.

'_**That is not good.**_' Sora thought as he noticed the electricity sparks leaping towards him as he attempted to put some distance between him and Tager. As he jumped back, Tager opened up his palms and the same electricity he emitted before came back as Sora felt a pull like never before forcing him back into Tager's hands as he grabbed Sora and send him flying towards the wall, creating a small crater as Sora coughed upon impact a bit of blood.

As Sora landed on his knees, the wind knocked out of him for a bit, he reached out for his weapon only to realize that it was not there as he saw that Iron Tager had managed to disarm him off his weapon as it laid stabbed on the opposite side of the Tyrannosaurus Rex exhibit. "**Give up, without your weapon you don't stand a chance against me.**" Tager threatened, trying to intimidate Sora but Sora didn't give much of a care as he wiped his mouth before spitting out a small excess of blood that had built up.

"**No thanks, I would rather take my chances thanks.**" Sora said, forcing Tager to retaliate as he immediately released out the energy inside him into a massive electric ball that Sora barely managed to dodge, causing his cloak to be blown off him as Tager saw and gasped a bit at the fact that the man he was fighting was in fact missing an arm. "**Professor, the enemy's missing a limb.**" Tager said, a bit disturbed by what was going on but Kokonoe knew better.

"**It doesn't matter if he's missing an arm or a leg. He made the choice to fight without an arm. Make him regret that choice!**" Kokonoe said as her eyes went towards another set of monitors she was looking at as she had managed to pull some strings within Sector Seven for her to get a squad into Otsu. She had to admit, trying to do business with Otsu was a bad idea in the first place and now that they know too much, she needed to close up all of the loose ends on her part. Her attempted hack failed and thus she's forced to take a more brute force approach.

"**Professor Kokonoe, we are approaching the location of where the 4 heads of Otsu are.**" A Sector Seven soldier said as they took their positions in front of the Midnight bar, ready to storm in and kill the heads on her order. "**Wait for 10 minutes and report back to me what they are doing.**" Kokonoe said as she knew better than to rush and get the men under her command killed unnecessarily. At the end of the day, it's just a couple of criminals who managed to get a whole hierarchical city under their control. Just what can they really do?

As Kokonoe planned to tie up the loose ends of her part, Tager was struggling to land a killing blow on Sora as Sora was just trying to get to the Rev Blade. '**I cannot let him get that weapon, I don't know what it can do but I must finish this before he can use it!**' Tager thought as he was a rational person. He was able to put together that Sora needed the Rev Blade for something but what was that? He didn't really know as Sora himself knew he stood no chance against Tager unarmed and had to get to the Rev Blade.

'_**Well, Guess now's the time to put the upgrades that Caroline made to the Rev Blade.**_' Sora thought as he began to run on the display cabinets, his boots cracking on the glass as Tager saw what he was doing. "**HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO THESE PRICELESS ARTIFACTS!**" Tager shouted, a man who respected the history that laid with these bones as Sora saw something he could try to exploit as he jumped hard on the glass display of the primitive weapons, causing the glass to shatter and the weapons to scatter into the air as he began to kick them right towards Tager.

Tager felt a sense of panic come into him as he began to use his magnetism to catch the priceless artifacts, being extremely careful with each piece as he looked at Sora, his anger starting to swell. "**DO YOU NOT HAVE ANY RESPECT FOR HISTORY!?**" Tager yelled as he charged right for Sora as he looked at a display containing the skeleton of a Raptor. "**No not really, Didn't care much for history back in the day.**" Sora said as he casually took a bone from said display and tossed it towards Tager, causing the display to lose balance as Sora continued to make a break for his weapon.

Kokonoe at this point was starting to notice that Tager's readings were starting to become a bit erratic. "**Tager calm down! He's just trying to provoke you that's all! Keep your head calm dammit.**" Kokonoe said as Tager caught the bone that Sora had tossed at him, moving as fast as he could to save the Raptor exhibit in time as he saw what Sora was trying to do. At this point, any hesitation that Tager might have had fighting a man missing his arm evaporated as he raised his hand towards the Rev Blade.

"**I won't let you!**" Tager yelled as Sora saw the Rev blade come right off the wall and flew straight for the other side, Tager intending to make sure Sora could not get the blade in time. Sora couldn't help but smirk at that as in front of Tager, at one moment he saw Sora running towards the Rev Blade. The next as soon as his eyes blinked he saw Sora, grabbing the handle of the Rev Blade and flying with the blade towards him as he managed to make a swing for Tager's chest, slashing it successfully as Tager's mind barely registered what had happened.

"**Did...Did you just see that Professor?**" Tager said, any anger he felt for the utter disrespect for the historical displays in the museum gone and replaced with utter confusion as Kokonoe herself had managed to catch a glimpse of what had happened, stunned by what she had seen. "**I...I did. He...he was clearly running for the weapon so how...**" Kokonoe's mind was struggling to process the events that had happened in front of her as Sora looked at the Rev Blade and quickly revved it, attracting Tager's attention.

"**ENHANCED GEAR!**" It shouted as Kokonoe immediately recognized the jingle that came out from the Rev Blade. Her eyes widened a bit in shock as she zoomed in on the weapon that Sora was using as for a brief moment, the lighting around the area had flickered. "**No way... It can't be.**" Kokonoe muttered as she began to furiously type on her keyboard searching through the Sector Seven Database, using a live scan of the Rev Blade to sift through previous projects done by Sector Seven as she refused to believe what she was seeing.

As she did this, Tager couldn't help but feel a sense of caution loom in the air as Sora immediately came flying for him, swinging his blade several times as Tager could still sense some electricity coming from the blade, enough for one last magnetism as he allowed Sora to get extremely close before doing so, throwing his attack off course as he went for a chop aimed at Sora's neck to quickly end his life.

As he did so, his eyes at the last minute noticed a small smirk coming from Sora's face as his hand reached for the brake handle of the Rev blade and held it down before Sora twisted his wrist, revving the blade once again as he willingly released the blade towards Tager before kicking him in the face, deflecting his chop away from his neck and putting a massive amount of distance away from the Red Devil as Tager felt the weapon land onto his hands.

"**Tager! You got the weapon! Now destroy it!**" Kokonoe ordered, realizing what it was but silence came out of Tager's lips. "**Tager! You heard me right! Destroy the sword now!**" Kokonoe ordered as she finally got a glimpse of Tager's face and saw the small dread that had built up on his face. "**Kokonoe... You are not going to believe me when I say this... But...I'm not holding a blade right now.**" Tager said as he slowly turned to look at what he was holding, not feeling a massive sharp blade in his hands right now...but something completely different.

"**I'm...I'm holding a****n arm ****for some reason!**" Tager said in surprise as Kokonoe's face paled when she saw what the blade had become and realized who had constructed the weapon as her sensors immediately lit up as she realized Tager was still in danger. "**ABOVE YOU!**" Kokonoe yelled as Tager looked up immediately upon hearing that and saw Sora on top of the Tyrannosaurus Rex's skull, pulling out a sharp knife and cutting the supports that held the head in place as Sora went into a free fall with the skull.

"**OH NO!**" Tager yelled, his first instinct being to catch the skull before it landed on him as he dropped the arm that he was holding at the heat of the moment and began to direct all of his electrical energy into magnetizing the falling dinosaur skull. As he did that, he felt two pairs of feet land on his back and push off, instantly realizing who could have done that as Tager managed to safely retrieve the skull before it could crash right through him as he turned behind him and saw Sora holding the arm in question as he now had a better look of said arm now that the initial shock had worn off.

The arm did not look like just a normal arm like what most mechanical arms were built and designed for. The arm instead looked more unnatural, with vents at the end of each finger tip and the motorcycle handle and brake of the Rev Blade now rested on top of the mechanical arm, folded into the arm itself and having it's own crevice to rest in as various vents were carved into the arm itself and not just at the fingertips. The palm of the hand had a massive open vent, as it to discharge something as Sora held the had up towards Tager.

"**Thanks for taking care of my arm.**" Sora said in a calm manner as the device attached to his stump activated, furling out to form a skeleton arm as Sora shoved the entire thing into the skeleton arm, causing clamps to come out and connect the mechanical arm with the skeleton arm as Sora didn't even wince a bit as the arm began to vent out a strange substance out as Sora began to stretch his newly attached arm.

"**Professor... what in the hell am I looking at.**" Tager said in pure shock at what he was witnessing as Kokonoe finally pulled out the schematics of the weapon that Sora was using. "**What you're looking at Tager is the first prototype of a weapon that is capable of becoming a limb... It's true purpose is to act as a seithr absorber.**" Kokonoe said, surprising Tager as he quickly remembered the flickering lights when Sora revved the blade.

"**So you're telling me he can use that weapon to absorb the Seithr into the area? Isn't that impossible!?**" Tager exclaimed in shock as Kokonoe nodded her head. "**Of course it is...because I made sure the project wasn't even allowed to get off the ground. It should have been ****completely dead ****with all of ****the red tape**** I did!**" Kokonoe said as Tager himself was starting to struggle with what was going on. "**For now, Be careful when he revs that thing! he's going to start taking away the Seithr in the area.**" Kokonoe warned as while Tager and Kokonoe were in the middle of this, Sora couldn't help but stare at his new arm with a bit of glee as he gave a few practice punches with it.

'_**Man... Did Caroline really make this Rev Arm sing. It feels so much better than the prototype she made me use for so long!**_' Sora thought as he punched his fists together, making sure the connection was solid as he immediately charged for Tager, deciding to really start pushing the Rev Arm through it's paces as his Rev Arm soon clashed fists with Tager's iron gauntlets, easily pushing them to the side as Sora was able to land a quick knee to Tager's chest as a result.

"**His punch overpowered my fist?!**" Tager thought in surprise as Kokonoe was rifling through any data she could get on the Rev Blade and Arm as she suddenly felt the phone on her desk ring as she picked it up in a bad mood. "**What do you want right now! I am busy!**" Kokonoe shouted as the voice through the phone simply chuckled. "**Well. You really do seem busy right now Professor... or should I just say Kokonoe.**" the Voice said as Kokonoe quickly realized who it was.

"**How the hell did you even this number Caroline?**" Kokonoe said as in a separate laboratory in Otsu sat a woman in her chair, holding said phone on her left hand. Her voluptuous body made it easy for people to think that she was merely cosplaying as a scientist as she stroked her long blonde hair that she had tied into a ponytail before pushing up her red glasses. Her top exposed a bit of her breasts and her skirt had a slit by the right side to expose some thigh as the woman, Caroline Patricia Smith smiled through the phone.

* * *

Caroline: **Well, I do have my ways. I mean, working in Otsu after all does come with it's own** **benefits, like an elite hacking team**

Kokonoe:** I should have figured that you are still alive. Even after you went missing when the NOL branch in Otsu was forced to close down.**

Caroline:** Of course I am, I had absolutely nothing after you did everything in your power to end my career in Sector Seven. I went to the NOL to try and get my work off there but with the whole revolution happening on the very first day, let's just say that my boss was kind enough to get me a job.**

Kokonoe: **As if I care about your sob story. What I want to know is how on Earth did you manage to finish the Rev System. I did everything in my power to make sure you couldn't get what you need to complete it.**

Caroline: **Of course you did, but for the legal channels. But here in Otsu, I can get whatever I want whenever I want and it's thanks to my Boss's connections. ****After all, this is Otsu, a free state where criminals can do whatever they want.**

Kokonoe: **You cocky little bitch, Do you realize what you have just done?!**

* * *

"**Do I look like I care about your little moral lecture!?**" Caroline yelled, catching Kokonoe off guard as Kokonoe remembered Caroline as more meek and less assertive as she was being currently. "**To this very day I still don't know why you tried so hard to stop my life's work. All I wanted to do was invent a device that could be used to clear the seithr that laid underneath our world. But you rejected my idea and instead of telling me why, you abused your power to get me kicked out of Sector Seven! I don't care who you are or who you parents may be, to me you're just one pretentious little bitch!**" Caroline yelled, the anger she felt for so many years came swelling into her passionate speech as she tried to calm herself down to no avail.

"**BOSS! SHOW MY BITCH OF A FORMER COLLEAGUE AND HER HUNK OF JUNK WHAT THE REV SYSTEM CAN DO!**" Caroline yelled, hacking through Tager's communications for a brief moment to relay that message to Sora as he scratched his head. "**Well... if you say so Caroline. I guess I am obliged to go all out for you.**" Sora said calmly, twisting the Rev Arm's wrist several times as the motorcycle handle and brake came out of it's crevice and swung around till Sora can grab and begin to rev on it, causing some of the Ars Magus lighting around the area to burst as Kokonoe pulled out her seithr readings.

"**Seithr in the area's dropping! Tager watch out!**" Kokonoe warned as Sora revved the arm once again, breaking even more ars magus lights as the emergency power for the building kicked in. "**DISTORTION GEAR!**" The arm yelled out as Sora soon charged towards Tager, slamming the gear back into the crevice and causing the seithr that he had collected to flow into him as Tager tried to intercept Sora by slamming his hands together to pancake him.

His attack whiffed however as he looked to the sky and saw Sora already descending towards him with a bicycle kick which forced Tager to block as Sora began to leverage the power in the Rev arm to begin pushing back against the gigantic foe in front of him. As he landed one of his punches right in front of the Red Devil's face, Sora grinned a bit before quickly dispelling out some seithr from the palm of the Rev arm, spraying it out as a mist that blinded Tager for a brief moment as Sora retreated into cover.

"**Tager, I don't care if you have to level the place to do so, I am giving you permission to go all out!**" Kokonoe yelled, determined to end this fight quickly as time was of the essence. Tager, realizing the gravity of the situation if his boss would allow the use of destructive force obliged as he began to charge up with even more electrical energy, as the area around Sora began to spark like electricity. '_**Shit, he's going to use that magnetism trick again. And something tells me it's going to be even more powerful than before.**_' Sora thought as he opened the rev arm's motorcycle handle and began to rev twice.

As soon as he did that, he felt himself getting swept off his feet as he flew right towards Tager as he had one of his hands out ready to catch him. Something told Sora if he got caught by that that would be bad so he needed to act quickly. As he revved the handle a third time, the room around them suddenly became black as Sora slammed the handle back into the crevice. "**ASTRAL GEAR!**" The rev arm shouted as Sora's eyes flicked for a brief moment as he saw what would happen if he did get grabbed by that hand.

In his head, he saw himself being flow all the way into the sky before meeting an explosive end at the ground beneath him. In his mind, he knew that would kill him instantly as he saw a possibility that he could take and knew he had to take it. As he did so, his right eye flickered with an azure green light as he dived right between Tager's feet, completely bypassing Tager's magnetism as in real time, Tager and Kokonoe were finally able to clearly see what was starting to become very obvious to them.

"**That ****disappearing and reappearing ****trick the kid's been doing. That's his drive!**" Kokonoe warned as Tager immediately looked below to see Sora sliding right between his legs as he used his free hand to try and quickly intercept Sora but he was too slow to react and exposed himself in the process. Sora, having recovered at this point, punched with the Rev Arm right at Tager's back, sending him flying towards the Tyrannosaurus exhibit, destroying the skull before Tager stopped just in front of the rest of the artifact as his sensors got damaged by that one attack.

"**Kokonoe! Is there any way to intercept the target's drive?**" Tager questioned as Kokonoe was already trying to analyze the confusing data that was in front of her. She had thought it was super speed so she was trying to play the video in micro seconds, hoping to catch Sora when he would speed up to the speed of light. But that was not the case, the second he slid under Tager's legs was the same second he was running, there was no super speed in play but something entirely different.

"**I am trying to find out what that is! it's not hyper speed and it's not looking like any kind of teleportation I am familiar with. This is something entirely different!**" Kokonoe yelled as Sora looked at the Rev Arm as he could feel the seithr flowing within him. Before he would be limited by how much seithr was inside him and in the area around him, but with this device that he had paid Caroline to build him, he could simply just store seithr in the area around him and super charge his own moves that way.

'_**Man...it feels like this thing was built for me in a way… well no time for me to dwell on that, it's time to finish this fight.**_' Sora thought as he began to rev the arm once again. Tager, now knowing just how dangerous the device really was, launched a ball of electrical energy to try and intercept Sora before he could finish gathering the area's seithr as Kokonoe noticed something in the readings. As the area's level of seithr decreased, Sora's level of Seithr increased to dangerous levels yet he was not breaking down like most people who have high levels of Seithr. Instead it was building up even more past the normal levels, building into levels she never thought could be possible.

'**Just what is even going on...**' Kokonoe thought as Sora quickly raised his rev arm to release a blast of Seithr to intercept the ball of electricity, revving the arm three times before clicking on the brake and slamming it back to the crevice. "**ASTRAL FINISH!**" The arm yelled as Sora grabbed the fist, feeling a massive swelling of energy swell through the Rev arm as he struggled to retain the energy inside. At this point, Tager knew that all he could do was try to brace for what was to come next.

As Sora began to run for Tager, he felt his phone vibrate three times before it stopped, telling him what he needed to know as he ran faster than ever before, faster than he even knew was even possible as he managed to slip the rev arm pass Tager's guard, palming it right at Tager's chest as Sora felt a massive discharge of seithr waiting to come out as Tager looked at the Rev Arm. Tager could barely get a word in as Sora couldn't hold it in anymore.

"_**KAZE NO UNARI!**_" Sora yelled as he released the massive build up of Seithr that he had collected right into the Red Devil's chest, pulling the rest of the surrounding seithr into his chest as he flew right into the tyrannosaurus exhibit, smashing the whole exhibit to bits as Kokonoe's screen went blank temporarily. "**Tager! TAGER!**" Kokonoe yelled, wondering what was going on as she tried to get the visual screen back. As she did so, her eyes looked right at the screen with the Otsu 4 heads and realized that she had taken her attention away from the squad for too long.

"**Hello? Is there someone through this tiny communicator watching?!**" Vlad yelled, as Kokonoe saw the men she had asked for, tied up with the helmet of one of the soldiers now placed on the table where she could clearly see the four heads of Otsu, with Vlad tapping on the camera and looking at it with curiosity. "**Will you stop doing that Vlad, I am pretty sure they can hear us.**" Tetsu calmly explained as Vlad grinned.

"**Well if they are, they aren't responding right now.**" Vlad explained as Kokonoe felt her blood run cold for a bit. This was simply becoming easily her worst day ever as she decided to talk with these guys. "**How on Earth did you guys know about the squad I sent you.**" Kokonoe questioned as she worked double time to fix Tager's sensors while talking with the heads. "**Well… when you rule a city of criminals, we own everything...especially the city's security cameras.**" Tetsu explained as Kokonoe face palmed, unable to believe that she of all people would let something as simple as security cameras fly past her mind.

'**Dammit, in all of my haste to make sure I covered my tracks I fucking forgot the most basic shit! I can't believe I am getting this damn sloppy!**' Kokonoe thought, slamming her fist on her table as she reached out for a lollipop to calm herself down as she took a couple of deep breathes before knowing what she needed to do. "What do you guys want?" Kokonoe questioned as Sofia smiled and leaned in forward.

"**Well...first of all, we want to know why you murdered our couriers Professor. That was not part of the deal. Are you trying to hide shit from us?**" Sofia questioned, getting straight to the point as Kokonoe bit her lips, her mind racing to think of what she could say at this point as she knew that if she answered wrong, there would be blood on her hands, blood that she didn't need right now as she rubbed her forehead several times.

"**Yes, I was trying to hide shit from you lot. Shit that I wanted to make sure stayed personal. That's all.**" Kokonoe said as she waited with bated breath for the response. "**Well… that's the former SSS ranked criminal for you. Covering up her tracks like usual.**" Zhang Pi said as Kokonoe's eyes widened at hear that. "**What? Do you really think we would just accept a job for the Professor Kokonoe without making sure to dig up any history she may have wanted people to not know. Bold move of you to delete your own bounty off the NOL mainframe. One wrong step and they would have got you right then and there.**" Zhang Pi complimented as Kokonoe's day was just becoming worse.

"**I am so glad that you four know of my criminal past. Can we move on to the whole demands that you have for me to repay for murdering your couriers? I don't really have much time right now.**" Kokonoe asked, just wanting to cut to the chase and forget her grave mistake. The four heads simply smirked as they looked at each other before Vlad decided to answer. "**Well now… since you murdered at least a couple of couriers, then tried to hack into our systems to delete data. I say that a proper payment would be for you to give us one of your top secret Sector Seven technologies for us to use. We are growing city after all and having some of Sector Seven's science will bring us closer to self reliance.**" Vlad explained as Kokonoe tched at that.

"**We are interested in learning more about this Idea Engine of yours.**" The moment Kokonoe heard those two words come out of Vlad's mouth, Kokonoe felt her fight and flight response kick in. How did a bunch of criminals know about the Idea Engine of all things. "**I am not in any hell going to give you guys any details about that. Pick something else.**" Kokonoe retorted immediately with some venom as the Otsu 4 heads looked at each other before Vlad shrugged.

"**In that case, what about some other Sector Seven tech that has of equal value to the Idea Engine that you don't mind divulging.**" Tetsu questioned as Kokonoe was surprised by how quick they were to give up on asking about the Idea Engine. "**I guess we can work something out from that… I'll send you the files of what I can find and you lot can pick what you want. So… Are we done here?**" Kokonoe questioned, just wanting to get on to her next job, not wanting to waste time with criminals any longer.

"**We are done for now… thanks for using our services this whole time, Professor.**" And with Sofia's last words, Vlad turned off the communicator as he pulled out the phone and rang a number which was soon picked up. "**The job's done Comrade Minakaze. Thank you for your hard work!**" Vlad praised as Sora was scratching his head, looking around the pitch black museum as he wondered if he had gone a bit too overboard with the Rev Arm before the emergency power kicked in.

"**That's good to hear. Just wire the money to Pikaka and I am happy.**" Sora said as he smiled before hanging up the phone and patting Tager's back who he had to pull out from the wreckage. "**Sorry about the whole fighting thing. Just our bosses being petty that's all.**" Sora said, apologizing to the big red man who surprisingly did not look as injured as he should have been. "**You were holding back weren't you… why didn't you just kill me then and there with that astral?**" Tager questioned as Sora closed his eyes and sat next to Tager.

"**Because I was doing my job. And I don't take jobs that require me to kill people. Those days are long behind me and I want to do something different with my life that doesn't involve unnecessary bloodshed.**" Sora explained as he raised the Rev Arm into the air. "**I want to live a life that I can be proud of...a life that I know other people can be happy with. I may take these odd jobs for now but someday I want to discover what is my place in this world and right now. I'm just traveling around, searching for that purpose.**" Sora continued as he looked at Tager.

"**So why do you use such a dangerous system right now? You are aware of seithr poisoning right?**" Tager questioned as Sora looked at the Rev Arm before grabbing the motorcycle handle and pressing on the brake, causing the arm to disconnect as the arm furled back into it's sword form while the skeleton arm did the same, folding itself back to the small compact shape that fit itself around his stump.

"**I have a bit of a unique condition...that's all I want to say for now. But regardless, at least with this thing, I can still fight while maintain my way of peace. My only wish really is to live out the rest of my days in relative peace with the occasional action here and there.**" Sora said with a bit of a smile as Tager's comms kicked in, allowing Sora to hear Kokonoe's voice through him. "**Tager, we've got to get going right now. ****I'll help you reboot your systems.**" Kokonoe said as Tager nodded his head before standing up, preparing to leave.

"**Wait...before we go…. Tell me, who the hell are you?**" Kokonoe questioned, making Sora point his finger to himself wondering if that question was directed to him. "**Uhhh… Sora Minakaze. Why?**" Sora questioned as Kokonoe paused for a moment before clearing her throat. "**Just wanted to know. Let's go Tager.**" Kokonoe said as Tager did not waste any more time and left Sora seated on the ruins of their fight as he scratched his head.

"_**Well that was awkward...**_" Sora said to himself as he noticed something lying on the ground and reached out for it. Picking it up, he realized he was holding a pill bottle containing a strange red pill as he looked at it with curiosity? "_**Did Tager just drop this? Maybe I should return this to him.**_" Sora said to himself but the moment he looked back where Tager had went, he realized that Tager was long gone. "_**Oh well… I guess I can always give it back to him when I see him again.**_" Sora said as he decided to relax among the rubble before he began his exploration of Kagutsuchi.

* * *

**...Curious to see what this town has in store for him…**

* * *

"**So is he the one that you were talking about Professor? The one that our recent contact was talking about?**" Tager questioned as at this point, he was standing on top of a rooftop, surveying the city of Kagutsuchi from his high vantage point as Kokonoe was busy checking for the name Sora Minakaze only to hit no results. "**Yup… that's the one the contact was talking about…**" Kokonoe said, rubbing her forehead as she realized that she was starting to get herself into trouble that she was not expecting. "**She will be coming in tomorrow to give you the information I need, we will have to change the venue because that museum's too wrecked for us to do anything in there.**" Kokonoe explained.

"**Understood. And what if I were to meet with Mr Minakaze again in the city? It seems that he will be here for a while longer before leaving.**" Tager questioned as Kokonoe thought about what Tager should do. "**Don't bother talking to him let alone pick a fight against that guy. With the rev system, the last thing we need is for him to drain the whole city of Kagutsuchi out of seithr and potentially cause a whole new crisis. I think we should let the contact know about him and let her handle that mess.**" Kokonoe answered as Tager was satisfied with that answer.

"**Permission to be honest Professor? That man is quite abnormal… with how much seithr his whole body is housing.**" Tager said as Kokonoe pulled out the seithr readings that Tager was able to get before he left. "**You're right, with the amount of seithr that kid has in him, he might as well be a walking nuclear reactor. Regardless, I don't really want to meet him again, just don't like him.**" Kokonoe said as she sucked on her candy while Tager simply nodded his head. "**You're not the only one professor...**" Tager said as his mind only went to one thing.

* * *

**...Just how many priceless artifacts were needlessly destroyed during that fight….**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING!? I Know this is very early for me to post a chapter and there's actually two good reasons why. First, I was well really inspired to write this chapter so I wanted to write as much of it as possible. The second reason? This whole month of September is going to be a bit of a busy month with me going to work on my university assignments so I want to make sure that I let you guys know that I may not be able to post as early as possible. So do expect a bit of a delay on the next chapter.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!? JUST WHAT ON EARTH IS SORA GOING TO DO IN A BIG HIERARCHICAL CITY LIKE KAGUTSUCHI!? WHAT IS THE MEDICINE BOTTLE FOR AND WHY DID IRON TAGER HAVE IT ON HIM!? AND JUST WHAT IS THE STAFF OF THE KAGUTSUCHI MUSUEM DO WITH ONE OF THEIR EXHIBITS WRECKED TO PIECES!? Well… read on and some of these questions will be answered.**


	12. Canon 11: Threads of Fate

(A NEW CANON BEGINS TO TURN AND THINGS ARE JUST BEGINNING FOR SORA MINAKAZE!? JUST WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT?)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 11

As Sora walked outside the Kagutsuchi museum, he couldn't help but wipe a sweat off his forehead. Clutching gently on the Rev Blade, Sora couldn't help but think that he may have gone a little overboard for what was supposed to be a simple job. '_**I hope that the museum repair costs doesn't dock my pay... Pikaka needs it more than me.**_' Sora thought as he felt his phone ring a little as he answered it quickly. "**Hello? Who is this?**" Sora asked, having not bothered to check the phone number.

"**It's...It's me.**" a female voice said as Sora immediately recognized who it was. "**Ahhh Caroline. I am guessing you're calling me because you want to know about the Rev system huh.**" Sora guessed as he took a seat by the museum stairs. "**N-No it's not that. I have been monitoring your fight with Tager and gathering the data from there... it's just...I want to call you for something.**" Caroline stuttered, clearly thinking about something as Sora decided to humor the woman.

* * *

Sora: **Alright then... what's on your mind?**

Caroline: **It's...in regards to my former boss...**

Sora: **Ahhh... you mean Professor Kokonoe? What about her?**

Caroline: **Well... you see... while you were fighting Tager, remember when I briefly hacked into his comms to tell you to kick his ass?**

Sora: **Just get to the point.**

Caroline:**...I talked back to my boss like you said I should if I ever got the chance...and I felt like I may have gotten a little too passionate and may have gone overboard.**

* * *

"**Let me guess, you allowed your emotions to get the best of you and you blew your lid off... that's understandable since she's the one who stopped your project in the first place.**" Sora said as he could hear Caroline audibly shake her head. "**I mean... it's good to get stuff off your chest... But I am afraid that I may have accidentally made things awkward between the two of us and I may have gone overboard with my whole rant and now she probably hates me even more besides for me having a much superior bust size.**" Caroline said, spewing out words like a mini gun as Sora couldn't help but shake his head and relaxed even more.

"**It's alright Caroline. You got what you need to say off your chest. If you two ever meet again you both can resolve things from there. Now relax before you get wrinkles that prevent you from ever getting that boyfriend you are desperately searching for.**" Sora said, causing the scientist to fluster up even more. "**THANKS FOR BRINGING UP MY NON-EXISTENT LOVE LIFE! UNLIKE YOU! WE SCIENTISTS STRUGGLE TO GET A BASIC FRIENDSHIP! LET ALONE LOVE!**" Caroline exploded making Sora chuckle as he always enjoyed the outbursts she would have when he would tease her about this.

"**Okay okay relax... in any other case, the Rev system worked like a charm. The new Astral Gear will take some time to get used to but the amount of Seithr it charges is crazy.**" Sora said, changing the topic to something that wasn't love related to calm her down as Caroline shook her head. "**That's good to know. Just don't overdo it. You only can use the Astral finish at least 2 more times before I can tune it up for you. Don't worry, I am already planning on upgrades to lift this restriction. it's just with the transforming mechanism, I don't think I can afford to put too much strain on the Rev system without introducing a way to dissipate excess Seithr out.**" Caroline explained as she began to type furiously on her new project.

"**That's good to know. As long as I don't use Astral heats the system won't go breaking on me. Don't worry, I'll be back soon so you can do some more tuning for me.**" Sora said as Caroline realized she had something else to reveal to Sora. "**Also, I have been checking on Pikaka, Neko and Derrick like you asked me to do so. It doesn't look like they have Amnesia because they remember who they are.**" Chikacho said as Sora rubbed his forehead.

"**That still doesn't explain why they are starting to have memory loss at their ages. I just don't want them to go all vegetable on me.**" Sora said as Caroline nodded her head. "**Just make sure to keep visiting them regularly and the effects won't be so bad. I wouldn't recommend long periods of being away from them. I don't know what would happen if that was the case.**" Caroline suggested as Sora nodded his head back at the suggestion.

"**Good idea. I'll be back in Otsu by 3 days so it's not going to be a long trip. Think you can hold onto the fort for a while?**" Sora questioned as Caroline smirked a bit. "**I've installed all the security cameras around the building and your apartment. Nobody's sneaking in without me knowing.**" Caroline said as Sora smiled. "**Thanks. You take care now**." Sora said before hanging up on her, not even letting Caroline say goodbye... not that she would normally as he couldn't help but start thinking about her.

"_**And to think I only met her 6 months ago...**_" Sora thought as he felt that he deserved a little shut eye, closing his eyes for a bit to get some well deserved rest as his mind began to drift and think about the woman named Caroline Patricia Smith not in a loving way but in a more nostalgic manner as she was a very different person from the Caroline he knew now as thoughts of the past soon came swirling on his mind...

* * *

**To the day the two met.**

* * *

**FLASHBACK**

**SORA POV**

* * *

I was coming back from a job I did for the Otsu heads. It had been at least a month since they found me at the bar and asked me to do jobs for them. Hell I didn't even know who they were, only that they were the four heads and that they were trying to get Otsu it's freedom. Hell if it wasn't for Pikaka they wouldn't have met me too since I liked keeping a low-profile even in Otsu. They are the people who are responsible as to why the town knows me now... not that I minded.

I was on an airship back, the day I was heading back was the day that Otsu finally got it's independence and I didn't know what was going to happen. A lot of people in Otsu these days are former Ikarugans from the Ikaruga war who ran into Otsu for hiding. The NOL branch in Otsu would be their target and those who worked there... after all, Old wounds heal slowly and grudges are eternal, of course they would want some kind of retribution over what happened in the war.

'_**I just hope I can get back home without a cluster fuck happening. it's the first day after all.**_' I thought as I looked out the window of the airship and much to my surprise, I saw a huge plume of fire break out just in front of the port as we landed. Jesus the crimes have already started and I haven't even gotten off the airship yet. Talk about getting a head start in introducing me to what my life was going to be from now on.

After going through the necessary immigration checkpoints, my feet finally stepped outside of the free Otsu for the first time and to say that the scene was chaotic would be doing it a disservice. Homeless people were rushing into stores, grabbing as much food and booze their arms would carry as children ran out of those same stores with candy in their hands. Even Pikaka was there, trying to carry as much booze in those gigantic paws of hers as she didn't notice me through her glee.

'_**Let's leave her be. I'm too pooped to carry anything anyways.**_' I thought stretching my arm a bit as I walked a little bit before hearing a woman shriek and tumble to the ground. "**W-What do you mean there's not enough in the evacuation ship!?**" The woman cried as I turned to the direction I heard the voice. "**We can't afford to carry any more personnel intern! That's why the whole branch has decided to leave you behind!**" An NOL officer shouted as I noticed a blonde haired woman wearing glasses with lenses so dark you can't even see her eyes on her knees, her NOL uniform conservative in nature as she even wore loafers instead of heels.

"**But I just started working here!? You can't just decide to leave me behind!?**" The woman shouted, her voice panicked but meek at the same time as she tried to stand up but the officer shoved her back to the ground with his feet. "**It's called survival of the fittest! And besides you were going to get cut anyways! Your project was too expensive for the NOL and we can't afford to keep you!**" The officer shouted, demoralizing the woman as he left her crying on the ground as she clutched a small suitcase she had with her.

"**No...No way...**" the woman said depressed as I scratched my head. '_**Talk about getting the boot... she didn't even get one day of work before she was fired.**_' I thought as I was about to leave her be when I suddenly heard her shriek again as I looked to see that she was slowly getting surrounded by a couple of Ikarugans. "**Well Well Well.. What do we have here. An NOL soldier being left behind by her branch! ****Your misfortune's our good luck lady.**" An Ikarugan said as the men began to surround her like a bunch of vultures.

"**W-What are you going to do to me!?**" The woman screamed in terror, clutching her suitcase close to her as a couple of the Ikarugans stared at her body. "**Is it just me... or are NOL women getting more and more busty these days. I mean look at the size of those melons!**" Another Ikarugan said as the woman placed her suitcase to cover her chest as her glasses failed to hide the tears that were coming out of her, cursing the situation she was placed in right now as I wanted to leave her be... but just seeing her like this was just too depressing even for me.

"**I say we bring her back to our hideout and have our way with her! It's definitely not enough to pay back what the NOL did to our nation and families, but it's a very reasonable start don't you think!**" The first Ikarugan said, grabbing the woman by her cheeks and pulling her closer to him in a suggestive manner as I tapped him on the shoulder. "**Huh?! What do you want?!**" The Ikarugan shouted as I gave him a roundhouse kick to the trash cans to allow me to see the woman up close and personal.

"**Just here to talk to the NOL woman in front of me. That's all.**" I said calmly as the Ikarugans were about to pull their weapons on me when one of them stopped the men. "**Don't attack! he's with the four heads!**" The Ikarugan said as they immediately fell silent. "**One of the four head's lackeys? Talk about bad timing...**" another said as I scratched my head. "**I work with them, not under them. This is why I hate fame sometimes**." I said as I looked at the woman before looking at her briefcase.

"**You don't mind me looking at what's inside?**" I said as the woman immediately became defensive. "**W-Why should I!? It's my life's work!**" The woman said, clutching the briefcase even more as I wanted to look at what she was trying so hard to protect. "**I heard what the NOL officer said. I am guessing this briefcase has something you're working on. I just want to see it. I am curious.**" I said, causing her to relax a little as she reluctantly opened the briefcase to allow us to see what was inside, probably out of fear of being raped if she didn't.

As soon as the briefcase was open for our eyes, I couldn't help but feel a strange attraction to it. It was on that day my eyes landed on the prototype of what would become the Rev system. A metal hand with a motorcycle handle. " **What the... why the hell are you carrying around a fucking metal hand lady?! It's not much of a damn collector's piece even with the motorcycle handle attached to the palm!**" an Ikarugan said, causing the woman to shriek but I silenced him with a back fist to his nose, causing him to hold back a nosebleed as I took the thing off the case.

After looking at it for a while, I couldn't help but try twisting on the motorcycle handle to see what would happen. Much to the shock of everyone...including me, the arm suddenly transformed itself into a blade as it was so light despite it's size. "**Jesus christ lady! A blade disguised as a mechanical arm!? How messed up can you be!?**" the Ikarugan I kicked to the trash said as the woman immediately got defensive.

"**MY INVENTION IS NOT MESSED UP! MY INVENTION WILL HELP US WALK DOWN ON THE EARTH SOMEDAY!**" The woman shouted back in defense as I couldn't help but look at her, seeing a woman who was trying so hard to do what she wants but there were several things holding her back. I walked up closer to her and grabbed her glasses and took them off her, surprising her as I saw the woman's brown eyes.

"**W-What are you doing!?**" The woman said, feeling attacked but I gave her back her glasses as I reached out for her pockets and pulled out her passport to look at what her name was. "**Caroline Patricia Smith... 20 years old and born in Kazomatsu...**" I said out loud as the woman, now obviously Caroline, collapsed to the ground in a flustered manner. I admit, the methods I used to see who she was as a person may have been a little over... but I just couldn't help myself when she's being passionate over a mechanical arm that has a neat trick behind it.

"**Alright. It's decided. You're going to work for me now.**" I said, chucking her passport over the rails as Caroline hastily tried to grab it but I stopped her. Did I need to toss her passport? No. Did I do it because I wanted to commit my first crime of illegally hiring a person without going through proper hiring channels because I may have wanted to commit a crime in the first place?... I admit yes.

Before Caroline could protest however, I carried her on my shoulders as I began to walk back home. The Ikarugans made way as I looked back at them. "**If any of you try to kidnap my first hire, I will find you...and I will make sure your deaths are as painful and obvious as possible.**" I said, keeping the rev system in it's briefcase as I walked with Caroline on my shoulders, crying over why she's even in this situation in the first place.

Now that I think back at that... There was another reason why I decided to kidnap Caroline that fateful day. When I first saw the prototype of the Rev system... a part of me felt a strange kinship with it. It was as if we were both meant for each other, like soul mates. I wouldn't say that it was competing against my love for Makoto but on that day... the Rev system was calling out to me...calling for me to use it. And when I saw Caroline's dreams about to be crushed in front of her I couldn't help myself but stop that... because I know all too well...

* * *

**...What it's like to have your dreams crushed...**

* * *

As Sora slowly woke himself up from his slumber, he couldn't help but feel the presence of someone staring right at him. '_**Oh god...Did I accidentally fall asleep thinking about that? That's definitely not good.**_' Sora thought as he rubbed his eyes. "**Sorry about that. I'll get off the stairs and be on my way now.**" Sora apologized, standing up as he felt strangely tired despite his brief respite. "**Oh no, you are just the person that I am looking for right now.**" a male voice said as Sora slowly opened his eyes hearing that.

The first thing his eyes caught sight on was the near bright green hair of the man as he was looking at him with his eyes closed. The man tipped his fedora a little bit as he leaned in closer towards Sora. "**The museum staff was talking about you. How you managed to beat the red devil in combat. I find that hard to believe ****myself that someone missing an arm could do such a thing.**" The green haired man said as Sora simply raised an eyebrow.

"**What. You don't believed that disabled people can fight just as well as people who are not disabled? That's just being rude now.**" Sora said, making the green haired man laugh as he sat right next to him. "**That is not important right now. Of course causing property damage is one thing but I am more interested about you in general... Sora Minakaze.**" The moment Sora heard his name get called out, he couldn't help but feel his blood freeze a bit as he looked at the man with some caution now.

"**Who are you? You know it's rude to talk and never give your name. Especially if you know the other person.**" Sora said, hoping to get some information out of the man as the man simply chuckled. "**My name's Hazama. I'm a captain in the NOL Intelligence department and also your girlfriend, Makoto Nanaya's boss.**" The moment he dropped that bombshell, Sora had even more reason to be alarmed. Not only does he know who he is, he also knew his relationship with Makoto? And he knew nothing of the guy at all.

"**So what does my girlfriend's boss want with me? It sounds like you should be going to her directly.**" Sora questioned as Hazama sighed. "**Well I would... unfortunately it looks like Miss Nanaya has decided to go rogue on the NOL.**" Hazama said, causing Sora to worry more and more. "**At the rate things are going, she's going to be charged with the crime of selling top secret NOL information and be given quite a hefty bounty... unless you help us with her.**"

As Hazama said those words, his eyes were secretly scanning Sora, trying to figure out who on Earth this man was. '**In all of my time observing different timelines, this is the first time I am observing a person who I have absolutely fuck all to know about. What's even worse is that information I wanted to use against this him as dirt is non-existent. Thank god I kept my own memories of what happened otherwise this whole thing would have fucked me over at some other point.**' Hazama thought as Sora himself was on his own train of thought.

'_**Makoto's a criminal now? And she's stolen top secret NOL information?!.. Wait a minute Sora... that's what this guy is saying but there's no news of it yet so that means that only he, I and a few people actually know what is going on right now. That means that he's trying to get something from me... if that's the case, then I should try to use this situation I am in right now to my advantage.**_' Sora thought as his stomach grumbled at that moment, giving him an idea.

"**I would like to... but I haven't gotten dinner yet and I am actually feeling pretty hungry.**" Sora said as Hazama couldn't help but shake his head. "**Oh this will not do, I can't have you going hungry on me before I can even get information on you. If I didn't find you lying on the stairs here I would have had to search all night long for you!**" Hazama said, trying to figure out what Sora was trying to do with such a weak excuse like this.

"**In that case... do you know anywhere that has good food in Kagutsuchi? This is my first time and it would be a shame if we didn't discuss this further with some dinner.**" Sora suggested, hoping to use Hazama to gather and confirm what Hazama had said about Makoto. Her safety is his number one right now and if something bad was happening to her, he would need to know that immediately so he could initiate his contingency plans.

"**Well... I do know of a chinese restaurant in Orient Town that has a couple of private rooms perfect for the conversation that we will need to have. Will that suffice?**" Hazama suggested as Sora nodded his head at that. "**Well if you know where this place is, I might as well let you lead me on.**" Sora continued as both him and Hazama smiled, not out of liking each other but more out of trying to maintain a facade that this was just two men who wanted to know each other better.

'**I see where this is going... well... if you want to join with me for some dinner I don't mind. I just hope you bother thinking about the reason as to why ****otherwise using you as bait for Miss Nanaya will be way too easy.**' Hazama thought as Sora was thinking differently. '_**Makoto... I don't what kind of trouble you have gotten yourself into recently, but if what I am fearing the most is actually happening, I hope what I have had planned as a contingency works out...**_' Sora thought as both Sora and Hazama's eyes lit up.

* * *

**...Ready to get into a battle of the minds...**

* * *

As Sora and Hazama went on to have dinner, Makoto Nanaya was on a flight booked for her by Sector Seven, drinking some red wine and trying not to get drunk in the process. The sweet bitterness produced by the red wine was not enough to dampen her thoughts of Sora as she couldn't help but place her hand on her head, wondering how things became the way they are. Here she was, betraying the organization that she would she would be working for the rest of her life for information that would lead to her boyfriend who she had heard from a gothic lolita girl the world had forgotten.

'_**Just what on earth does life have planned for me? Making me go through so much craziness in just the span of one...maybe two days?**_' Makoto thought as she looked in front of her as the seats she was given is in business class which was currently empty, leaving her just the sole person in there as she decided to lift up her necklace and stare at it for a while. Her mind went back to Sora... her lover that only just a day ago, she would have had absolutely no idea who he was.

"_**God dammit Sora... Why do you always have this tendency of attracting trouble to yourself. Whether it be in the academy or out of it, you're always still the same...**_" Makoto muttered as she suddenly felt a presence behind her that alarmed her as she turned around to see Rachel Alucard sitting behind her, terrifying her as she had no idea she was there. "**HOW ON EARTH DID YOU GET HERE!? JESUS!**" Makoto said in a great panic, clutching her heart and trying to not have a heart attack.

"**I can't tell you everything now. Just know that it has something to do with magic.**" Rachel explained as Makoto simply nodded her head, understanding what she meant by that. "**So what made you appear out of nowhere to give me a sudden heart attack then?**" Makoto asked as Rachel thought for a moment before answering. "**It's simple really. I am here to just pass the time.**" Rachel said as Makoto couldn't believe what she had just heard.

* * *

Makoto: **Pass the time? Don't you have like ummm… important stuff to do rather than just talk with someone like me?**

Rachel: **of course. But I feel like having some company before I go on and do my other tasks. And besides, your current situation is interesting to me**

Makoto:** Interesting huh… don't sound like a creep when you say it. It makes me feel like you want to know my whole life story like some creepy stalker.**

Rachel: **I can assure you, I will not stalk you forever. I just wish to know how a woman like you was able to ****survive not only two trips through the boundary, but also survive a mental assault by that man of all people.**

Makoto:**… I don't pretend that I know how… But I guess it's because of my friends...and...Sora… Speaking of which, there is something about Sora that I want to know about.**

* * *

"**Do tell, You have my interest and time right now.**" Rachel said as Makoto sat down on her seat, staring in front of Rachel as something she had been thinking for a while was beginning to stir. "**You said that people in Otsu knew about Sora… Did you check to see who exactly knew him?**" Makoto asked as she couldn't help but be a bit bothered by that. At the time, she took Rachel's word as truth and was about to head to Otsu as soon as she gave the information that Kokonoe wanted.

Now that she's on her way to Kagutsuchi and has had some time to think about it. She realized that she was not as through as she should have been. She had not asked Rachel about where she had learnt about that and if it really is everyone in Otsu that remembers him. "**If I may be honest… I simply went to the town myself and observed the people there. I did not ask any individual ****if they knew Mr Minakaze. I simply heard his name get thrown around the locals.**" Rachel explained as Makoto couldn't help but slap her forehead.

"**Then that means the town of Otsu knows about Sora...but we don't know the specific people that know about Sora?!**" Makoto said as Rachel simply paused for a bit before Makoto shook her head. "**WERE YOU EVER GOING TO TELL ME ABOUT THIS!? DO YOU ALWAYS LEAVE OUT KEY INFORMATION THAT YOU THINK PEOPLE WOULD WANT TO KNOW!?**" Makoto asked as she couldn't believe that she was going into Otsu and ask people about Sora without knowing if they knew him or not.

"**I simply thought an observation was enough information at the time. I had more pressing matters to tend to and asking every single person in Otsu is a plebian task.**" Rachel explained as Makoto couldn't believe what she had just heard but she couldn't afford to spend unnecessary energy to shout at a woman who didn't do basic question and answering. "**I guess I can ask the people I know Sora knows like Pikaka, Derrick and Neko… but who knows when I am going to be heading there.**" Makoto summarized as she rubbed her forehead in an attempt to calm herself down.

"**A word of caution I may give you… be very careful of Phenomena Intervention. Recently, the entity has increased the frequency of Phenomena Intervention and as a result. You may slowly start losing your memories of Sora Minakaze.**" Rachel warned as Makoto's eyes opened up wide once again, realizing what that meant. "**WHY DID YOU LEAVE THAT TO THE VERY LAST MINUTE TO TELL ME!? NOW I MUST FIND SORA BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE DAMMIT!**" Makoto shouted, frustrated by how much information was being left out from her.

"**That is advisable. If you can find Mr Minakaze, perhaps your soul can form a kind of imprint and help reinforce your memory on the boy. It's just a theory… but better than nothing I suppose.**" Rachel suggested as Makoto couldn't help but want to slam her forehead on her seat. "**So...not only am I on the clock with my memories… but I also don't know who exactly knows about Sora… Way to ruin my life world.**" Makoto cursed as she turned around to look at Rachel.

"**So what am I supposed to do? Just go and find Sora as soon as I give this information?**" Makoto asked, hoping that Rachel would give her some kind of insight or wisdom but what she was met with was the gothic lolita girl simply shrugging. "**I do not know. I am just an observer. I cannot give you the answers to your problems. That is up for you to decide what to do.**" Rachel explained as Makoto closed her eyes and sighed.

"**Then what the hell am I supposed to decide about!?**" Makoto said, looking at Rachel but feeling her blood freeze. Rachel Alucard was no longer there. The seat she occupied no longer having a trace of the person that sat there. She couldn't help but shake her head several times as she couldn't believe what she had to bear witness as she just decided to close her eyes at that moment and try to get more rest.

"**God dammit Sora… what god did you piss out to get this kind of fate?..**" Makoto thought in frustration as she didn't know what was even going on at this point. What she knew was that none of that mattered and she needed to focus her sights on finding Sora and ensuring that he was alright. As soon as her feet touch Kagutsuchi, she will immediately contact Professor Kokonoe and let her know that she has arrived… and once the data she collected back at Ibukido gets handed to the professor she can begin her search… there was just one thing that ran through her mind….

* * *

**...Will she be able to find him in time before her memories of him get wiped out again…**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? How is everyone doing in this fine day!? If you all have noticed, the chapter's a bit shorter than normal and there's a simple explanation for that. This month has been particularly busy for me. Hell as I am writing this chapter I still have assignment work that is due in the next two weeks. So this is about as much as I can write for the time being without causing my brain to crash in the process. Still, I hope that this explains some things for you guys and also keep things interesting.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT NOW THAT THINGS ARE STARTING TO ACCELERATE IN A WAY THAT NOBODY COULD FORESEE!? WHAT IS HAZAMA'S PLAN WITH SORA AND WILL SORA BE ALRIGHT!? AND HOW MUCH LONGER MUST WE WAIT UNTIL SORA AND MAKOTO FINALLY MEET BACK WITH EACH OTHER!? Well then… keep on reading to find out what is going to happen next.**


	13. Canon 12: Chinese Food Questioning

(A new Canon is approaching and we shall see where the whims of fate will lead us to? The question is simply are you ready for what is to come?)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 12

Previously on Canon Distortion

Sora Minakaze was resting from his previous battle against Iron Tager. While he was doing so, his mind wondered towards the past, specifically the time he rescued Caroline Patricia Smith, a woman who he would eventually employ under him to create and perfect the Rev System, a system of her own creation. When he came to however, his eyes were greeted to the sight of a green haired individual simply known as Hazama as he wanted to ask him a few question in regards to Makoto. Now the both of them head towards a restaurant to not only eat...but also question each other what is going to happen next...

And Now, the continuation of Canon Distortion.

* * *

"**So...this is the place huh...**" Sora said looking at Hazama as he smiled. "**Why of course. I did promise you that I would take you to a place that has good food didn't I?**" Hazama said as Sora couldn't help but stare back at the restaurant with some worry in his eyes. "**Are you sure you can even call this a restaurant... it looks more like one of those palaces that I read back in the academy." **Sora said as he and Hazama were stood in front of a Chinese restaurant in Orient Town.

From his limited knowledge about Kagutsuchi from reading a travel guide, Orient Town is a part of Kagutsuchi well known for it's Chinese culture. A culture that Sora himself didn't even know well enough to even fathom how good it was. All he knew about Chinese culture was that it supposedly has a wide variety of foods that a person could try and that Kagutsuchi is a boiling pot for all of these different types of Chinese cuisine.

"**What's the matter? You look like you have never had Chinese food before.**" Hazama said as Sora scratched his head. "**That's because I haven't. The cuisine never really interested me but I have always wanted to at least have it once in my life.**" Sora explained as Hazama couldn't help but grin at his fortune. '**Talk about lucky. All I have to do is distract him long enough with food he has never seen before and he will be easy to catch. Don't make this too easy for me now.**' Hazama thought as soon the both of them were seated in the Chinese restaurant they were standing in front of.

"**HELLO! WHAT DO YOU WANT!?**" A loud mouthed waitress shouted as both Sora and Hazama looked at their menus with intent. "**I would like to try your Kagutsuchi Puffer fish simmered in peppers and spices please. It sounds rather lovely.**" Hazama said as he was content with just that one dish. As soon as he gave his order, the waitress turned her attention towards Sora as he focused his attention on the menu, trying to figure out what we wanted.

"**Hmmm...What looks good...**" Sora mumbled as Hazama couldn't help but grin. '**Go ahead. Order away. I will just be sitting here, waiting for my chance to catch you at your least expected.**' Hazama said as Sora nodded his head realizing what he wanted. "**Right...I want the pork minced Mapo Tofu, spicy minced eggplant with beef, shark fin soup, your cumin spiced sliced lamb...**" As Sora spat out orders, Hazama couldn't help but feel his face pale a bit as the waitress continued to write the order down on her notepad.

'**Is...Is this guy going to eat everything off the damn menu!? and just how much money does he have to spare this much for dinner!?**' Hazama thought as the waitress struggled to keep up with Sora's orders. "**And finally, one peking duck. Whole.**" Sora finished as the lady looked at the order and cleared her throat. "**You...You sure you are going to be able to eat all of this? This...this is about 1/3 of our menu sir.**" She said, stunned by the order.

"**Yeah... just make sure everything is in small plates please. I am not asking for you to bring them in serving size.**" Sora explained as the waitress simply noted that request down her pad and walked back to the counter, Sora clearly able to see that she was trying so hard to hold back her excitement over the massive order. "**You...You must be very hungry to make that order huh...**" Hazama said, trying to hide an annoyed face as he cannot help but feel a bit disgusted with such frivolous spending.

"**No not really, I just want to try as much as I can and this restaurant has enough in their menu for me to try. I just wonder if I accidentally ordered too much.**" Sora said, scratching his head as Hazama couldn't help but take a deep sigh to relax as he looked at Sora in the eyes. "**In any other case... I believe it's time we started talking about Makoto...**" before Hazama could finish his statement, the waitress quickly brought in the first dish.

"**HERE YOU GO! FRIED CHICKEN SKINS WITH RED DIPPING SAUCE!**" The waitress yelled as she quickly rushed back to the kitchen to help work on the rest of the order as Sora smiled and took the chicken skin and nibbled on it. "**This is not bad... this restaurant's looking good so far.**" Sora said as he took another chicken skin and dipped it into the red dipping sauce to have a bite from there. Hazama decided that while Sora was eating his dinner, he should start asking his questions.

* * *

Hazama: **Before we were interrupted, I was about to ask you some questions about Makoto Nanaya. Will you be willing to answer some questions in regards to her.**

Sora: **Ummm… Sure I guess… What do you want to know exactly though?**

Hazama: **Well I was hoping you may know where she might be heading as we speak? **

Sora:** Ummm...I can't really answer that. I don't have her phone number so I can't contact her and thus I won't know where she is.**

Hazama: **Don't have her number… Aren't you her boyfriend? Isn't that something you are supposed to know right from the bat in a relationship?**

Sora: **Wait...that is something you're supposed to do?.. Well to be fair, for the longest time I didn't have a phone let alone a phone number so that's why I didn't get her number for the longest time. I mean it wouldn't be hard to find it but still...I should get to doing that huh…**

* * *

"**Yeah you should… Otherwise it would be difficult to keep track of her don't you think?**" Hazama said as his eyes continued to keep focus on Sora. '**What is so special about this kid that Relius sees huh… To me he looks like another Ragna that I want to just ruin his life. Oh when I find that squirrel bitch, I cannot wait to make her suffer just like precious old sister. Oh when that happens, I don't think I would be able to restrain myself.**' Hazama thought, leaking out an aura that Sora could sense. '_**Jesus...this guy feels so wrong...I hope I don't have to spend too long with a creep like him.**_' Sora thought

"**Regardless of your current contact status… Sora Minakaze, tell me more about your current relationship with Makoto Nanaya? You say you are her boyfriend… yet I don't hear her talk about you often.**" Hazama questioned as Sora wondered how to answer this question. "**Probably because we chose to keep our relationship a secret from everyone else… including her boss who for some reason knows about our relationship but I won't ask how because I know said boss will simply say "Intelligence" as an excuse to hide how he really knew… but that I just me taking a guess now.**"

'**Damn…**** this brat is giving me some sass… that's a first.**' Hazama thought as he shook his head. "**Oh don't be like that. I am not that cruel to simply give such a shoddy answer like that. I know you must be very worried about her and would want a better answer from me.**" Hazama explained as Sora listened to the man before nodding his head. "**Alright them. Spill it out. How did you find out?**" Sora questioned as Hazama maintained his calm and happy exterior but inside… he couldn't help but panic a bit.

'**Alright Hazama...You can do this… what's the perfect excuse to use for why you know the relationship of a co-worker…! Oh yeah! That's it.**' Hazama thought as Hazama cleared his throat. "**Well… I was walking around the office one day when I noticed Miss Nanaya looking at something. When she left her desk, I couldn't help myself but peek at what she was looking at and would you know it. I found a picture of you on it.**" Hazama lied, saying it with a confident tone as Sora looked at him for a moment before nodding his head.

"**I guess that's fair… even though you violated her private life in the process. There are just some people who cannot help themselves and just peep.**" Sora said, seemingly buying to Hazama's excuse as Hazama smiled and leaned back on his chair. "**I know what I did was wrong… but I couldn't contain my curiosity. Seeing her all giddy like that, that would make anyone curious.**" Hazama explained as Sora took a drink of his tea.

'**Good job Hazama… you managed to slip your way past that one.**' Hazama thought as Sora couldn't help but look at his tea. '_**God… This tea tastes of nothing… I am starting to regret my decision to drink this tea. It tastes… bad.**_' Sora thought as he wanted to order something to drink but realized they didn't have any alcohol he would like to drink. As soon as Sora thought about getting a drink, the appetizers arrived in a tray.

"**Here you go! Have some appetizers while you two talk! Your mains will come soon after!**" The waitress said in happiness as Sora smiled and picked up one of the dishes and sampled it while Hazama continued to stare at the contents of the tray. '**God I hope he doesn't expect that I am going to eat that much with him? What does he think I am, his friend?**' Hazama thought as Sora was secretly thinking about his current situation.

'_**This guy from Intelligence is trying to grind me out for information… but more importantly than that… what is with this Chinese food?… is it me or does it taste rather...plain?**_' Sora thought as he looked at Hazama while eating a piece of chicken feet. "**Do you want to eat something? You look rather skinny and you might be starving.**" Sora asked, offering a dumpling to the green haired man as Hazama smiled.

"**Why thank you for the offer.**" Hazama said as he took the dumpling off Sora's hand and simply gulped it down without chewing it once. Sora couldn't help but wince seeing that as he looked at Hazama weirdly. "**What? Did I do something to offend you?**" Hazama questioned as Sora nodded his head much to Hazama's surprise. "**The way you ate that dumpling without even chewing it once… I cannot help but cry a little since you aren't actually taking a bite on what is inside.**" Sora explained as Hazama couldn't help but feel weirded out by that explanation.

"**You...You sound dedicated to the world of food… Are you some foodie or even culinary critic I have never heard about?**" Hazama questioned as Sora couldn't help but rub his head hearing those words. "**I like food as much as anybody else. I just don't like it when people either try to eat food in a fancy way or use fancy terms to describe what they are eating. It's either you like the food or not.**" Sora explained as Hazama couldn't help but realize that what Sora said had nothing to do with the way he ate the dumpling in the first place.

"**So...What is wrong with me eating the dumpling without chewing on it.**" Hazama said as he picked up another dumpling and swallowed it. As soon as he did that, the dumpling skin broke and immediately a rush of hot liquid rush out through his throat as he began to cough hard. "**Because there are soup dumplings like that and you will burn your throat if you don't chew on it first.**" Sora explained as Hazama quickly rushed to get a glass of water to douse the pain in his throat.

"**Why didn't you say so in the first place!?**" Hazama asked quickly as Sora scratched his head a bit before nodding. "**Because it was obvious that I ordered it… unless you were zoning out when I was making that order?**" Sora questioned as Hazama couldn't help but sweat a bit when he realized that he was not paying attention to what Sora had ordered as he only listened to a couple of the orders. "**Uhhh.. No of course not! I was paying very close attention!**" Hazama replied, hoping to not arouse suspicion.

"**Uh huh… then you should know what we are getting for entrees.**" Sora said as he took a bite of a soup dumpling as he couldn't help but thank his luck as Sora was hoping that Hazama would tell him more about what is going on with Makoto as entrees arrived. "**So… what kind of info did Makoto steal in the first place? Sounds like it's something rather important.**" Sora asked as Hazama looked at him with semi serious eyes.

"**Oh? Why are you so curious to find out?**" Hazama questioned as Sora simply took a deep breath. "**Because I know the NOL don't just go making their own men criminals unless the information they take is rather severe… Like for example the truth of what really happened in the Ikaruga war or how the NOL had stopped several attempts from the Ikarugans to call for a cease fire.**" Sora explained as Hazama couldn't help but grin a little hearing that.

"**So it is true that Otsunians are well versed with what happened in the Ikaruga war...**" Hazama said as Sora simply shrugged. "**Well… we did get a lot of refugees… refugees the NOL can't go taking unless they want to risk an all out war again with negative public reception aimed at their way.**" Sora continued as Hazama laughed hearing that. While it is true that the NOL could easily destroy Otsu when they wished. The Public's perception of them has taken a nose dive that even trying to take down a city full of criminals may not have the public be by their side.

"**Well you are right about that… the NOL can't do a thing about Otsu right now… well at least until the whole public outrage about the way the Ikarugan war was handled is over. But just remember that you Otsunians are living on borrowed time here. Once the public forgets about the Ikarugan war, we will come for you next.**" Hazama threatened, hoping to use that as leverage for him to peer closer into Sora as Sora could feel Hazama's eyes stare right into him, trying to find something.

'**Come on… Let me observe you already so I can figure out what makes you so special to Relius and the Squirrel bitch.**' Hazama thought as Sora had a different thought about what Hazama was doing. '_**Jesus this guy is serious… just the way he's staring at me is giving me the creeps, still… I have to know what is going on with Makoto no matter what.**_' Sora thought as he took a bite out of the mapo tofu he had ordered only for his face to slightly sour.

'_**Besides that...I think this is a restaurant I will be skipping the next time I am in Kagutsuchi… Chinese food is interesting but this food is not.**_' Sora thought as he took a sip of tea carefully to avoid getting drunk from the stuff. "**Regardless of what you NOL bums think… you still haven't answered my question in regards to what Makoto had stolen. So unless you are willing to wait until your Kagutsuchi Puffer fish with peppers and spices gets cold, I suggest you tell me that now.**" Sora questioned as Hazama took a small sigh.

"**She took information from a ruined NOL base in Ibukido. I can't say anymore than that...**" Hazama explained as Hazama couldn't help but feel a sense of frustration as for some strange reason, he was unable to observe Sora, as if something was preventing him from doing so. '**Great...not only does this guy have absolutely nothing on him...I can't even observe him at all!… wait a minute...nothing on him… I wonder...**'

"**Say Mr Minakaze… where did you do your education from? An Otsunian school I presume?**" Hazama questioned as Sora couldn't help but raise his eyebrow at that. "**I was part of the class of first years that graduated during the Black Lotus Rebellion. You know, the war that forced the NOL to stop fighting Ikaruga for a bit and even made the head of the Hazuki household rejoin the ranks of the NOL as supreme commander.**" Sora said as Hazama couldn't help but stiffle an annoyed grunt hearing that.

"**Ummm…**** you must be pulling my leg. I checked the databases and I swear that you were not part of the NOL academy alumni.**" Hazama politely said as Sora scratched his head. "**Huh… that's weird. I still have my graduation certificate that the academy gave me back home.**" Sora said as more and more things were staring to come to light for Hazama. '**Fuck me he may just be even more annoying that Ragna at this rate. At least with that white haired dog, I can enjoy torturing his every waking moment with all the dirt I have in the world. This asshole has nothing I can use to inflict pain with!**' Hazama thought as Sora knew that things were starting to get dicey.

'_**I think I may have overstayed my welcome here. I better get the hell out of here before he thinks of taking me back to the NOL station here and holding me up there. I haven't even explored the rest of the city yet!**_' Sora thought as he stood up. "**If you don't mind… I'm going to the restroom for a little bit.**" Sora explained as Hazama simply nodded his head and allowed him to leave for the restroom. This allowed Hazama to pull out his phone as he began to search the NOL database for any info that he could find on Sora.

And he searched everywhere, from the NOL's own vast databases to even dark webs where you can find anything about a person if you are desperate enough. But much to his annoyance and chagrin, Relius was right in saying that the person they are trying to find is a complete phantom. "**Could he be one of those people who are not meant to exist?.. even so, he should have disappeared by now if that was the case… so why is it taking so damn long for this guy to just go away...**" Hazama wondered out loud as he waited a few more minutes for Sora to come back from the restroom.

"**Still...what is taking that guy so long to just use the toilet? Is he doing a number 1 or number 2?**" Hazama wondered as he continued to eat his puffer fish, wondering what was taking Sora so long in the first place. As the time continued to tick down, Hazama couldn't help but continue to wonder what was taking Sora so long in the first place. "**Something is off...very off...**" Hazama said, his tone becoming serious as he stood up and noticed that the weapon that Sora carried around with him was nowhere to be seen.

'**Why would he need his weapon if he's going to the toilet?.. I don't like this...like this at all...**' Hazama thought as he decided to go and check up on Sora, deciding to check if he was alright and if he had just gotten food poisoning from the food. "**Hello? Mr Minakaze? Are you doing alright?**" Hazama questioned as he walked into the men's restroom. Silence greeted him for a while as Hazama's face slowly soured.

'**Don't tell me he did what I think he did...**' Hazama thought as he began to meticulously check each stall, peeping under to see Sora's feet but nothing. It was until he walked to the final stall and checked the door only to realize it was locked that Hazama's scowl became even more irritated as he kicked the door open to be greeted with an unoccupied toilet with a small window installed for ventilation open as the staff came rushing in.

"**What's the matter sir!? Why you kick down the door!?**" The waitress said, having barged her way into the bathroom as Hazama quickly recomposed himself and looked at the waitress in the eyes. "**I am afraid that the man who was with me has dined and dashed.**" Hazama calmly reported as the waitress's face immediately paled. "**OH NO... THAT MAN WAS...NO!**" The waitress panicked as she ran to the front of the restaurant panicking heavily as that made Hazama curious.

"**Why are you panicking like that? It's just another normal dine and dash incident.**" Hazama said but the lady shook her head furiously. "**You don't know do you... the legend of the Frenchman.**" The waitress said as Hazama looked at her baffled. "**Frenchman? Like a french person?**" Hazama questioned as the waitress face palmed heavily. "**Not a french person... but the title given to the most infamous dine and dasher in the world!**" The waitress said as Hazama couldn't help be even more baffled.

* * *

Hazama: **Infamous dine and dasher? What are you talking about if I may be allowed to ask**

Waitress: **Ohh... The Frenchman is infamous for his ability to dine and dash from any restaurant regardless of how high class it is! It is said that restaurants he doesn't dine and dash from become famous like no other but those he ditches end up going downhill!**

Hazama:**... You're telling me that this particular dine and dasher has the ability to simply ****run away from any restaurant... Why don't you just report him to the NOL then?**

Waitress: **it's considered a golden rule not to report the Frenchman... it's considered a bad omen... something that all restaurants which are worth their salt know not to provoke... restaurants all around the world keep track of which have been Frenchmaned... and we make sure that no customer ever finds out that our restaurant got frenchmaned... and he didn't like the food...**

Hazama:**... That sounds ridiculous... You are over exaggerating things don't you think?**

* * *

The waitress simply had to pull out a small book for Hazama to see as he took a simple peek at what seemed to be an innocent looking book only to be stunned by the vast number of restaurants listed in this one book. "**You...You got to be kidding me... this is about at least 100 restaurants listed in this book alone?!**" Hazama exclaimed in surprise as he couldn't believe what he was looking at. From all of the possibilities... this had to be one of the most unique possibilities he had ever witnessed...

'**Wait a minute... Maybe I can use this to my advantage.**' Hazama thought as he looked at the waitress. "**Do not worry about the bill..as much as it pains me, I will pay for the bill today. In return, I simply must request that you allow me to have this book of restaurants that the Frenchman has hit. I swear by the NOL to bring the Frenchman to justice.**" Hazama said, bringing relief to the waitress as deep inside, he couldn't help but feel an anger towards his new white haired friend grow within him.

'**Mr Minakaze you little bitch... when I find you again and I will find you... I swear to god you better have an insurance...no...a will written up became I am going to make sure Miss Nanaya finds you chopped up to itty bitty pieces and sprinkled all over the damn floor!**' Hazama thought in pure anger as the Waitress simply cleared her throat. "**So... do you want to pay the bill right now?**" The waitress asked as Hazama realized he was letting his emotions get the better of him as he looked at the waitress with a smile on his face.

* * *

"**Why of course... sorry for the wait.**" Hazama simply said, dreading the bill he had to pay.

* * *

As Hazama dealt with the restaurant bill he was forced to pay, Sora was walking down the streets of Kagutsuchi, slinking around the alleyways as he had made his escape from what was in his mind, a Chinese Restaurant that didn't live up to his expectations. '_**That's probably going to be the last time I will let a stranger take me to a restaurant ever… and another restaurant to add to the list of restaurants to never visit again.**_' Sora thought as he pulled out his notebook and quickly wrote down the name of the Chinese restaurant thanks to the card he took from the front.

'_**Still...I was hoping to get more from him...but I guess the info I got from him for the time being will do...**_' Sora thought as he knew he had to act immediately before the NOL gets to Makoto as he pulled out his phone to make a call towards Caroline. "**Hello? What you need boss?**" Caroline questioned as Sora took a deep breath. "**Caroline, I need you to let the heads know I am cashing in on my favor to them.**" Sora said as Caroline immediately went silent on the phone.

A favor from the heads is something that a lot of Otsunians want, the ability to use the heads and their vast criminal connections around the world to do whatever they want is simply a criminal's wet dream. "**What's the favor?**" Caroline simply said, understanding the severity of the situation as Sora looked around his surroundings before saying what needs to be said. "**I need them to help me locate Makoto Nanaya and if she is ever in Otsu, ensure that she's well taken care off in the city.**" Sora explained as Caroline immediately began her search through the database.

"**Is it Makoto Nanaya of NOL Intelligence who is pending to be given a dead or alive warrant for stealing sensitive NOL information from an NOL dead site?**" Caroline questioned as Sora simply nodded his head. "**That's the one. She's...someone very important to me and I feel that people will try to use her in order to get to me…**" Sora explained as Caroline thought about what he had said before giving her own answer.

"**If that's the case, I'll make sure the criminals within Kagutsuchi are notified about Makoto and will keep you updated. Apparently from tracing back information I could find from networks, She's currently on her way to Kagutsuchi on what is being labeled as official NOL business.**" Caroline explained as Sora couldn't help but be surprised by that. '_**Makoto's coming over to Kagutsuchi? What on Earth is she doing here?**_' Sora wondered as Caroline's typing could be heard through the phone.

"**For now, you should head to the safehouse for the night. I am sending the coordinates onto your phone. The message will delete itself as soon as you see it so make sure you get a close look on it.**" Caroline explained as Sora felt his phone vibrate, indicating to him that he had gotten the message. "**Alright, let me know what the heads say and keep me updated on Makoto's whereabouts. I'm going to head to bed now to get ready for tomorrow.**" Sora explained as Caroline simply nodded her head.

"**Of course Boss, good luck out there.**" Caroline said as Sora hung the call and sighed, lying his back onto the wall. '_**Still...what a shitty situation you have gotten yourself into Makoto… I just hope that you are going to be alright.**_' Sora thought before shaking his head furiously. '_**What are you thinking Sora!? You have to just do it. You got to find Makoto and make sure she's alright… I will have to also make sure I find a way for us to get out of the city without raising too much attention.**_' Sora thought, determined to make sure that Makoto was not harmed in any way as he stood up and checked his phone's mail.

"_**Ronin-Gai huh… and it's above a well known candy store too…**_" Sora mumbled as he knew where was his next destination. At this point, Sora simply needed rest in order to make sure that his mind was sharp for the next few days ahead. If the fact that the Red Devil was here...and carrying a pill bottle of all things which currently is in his possession, something tells him that the next few days will be quite the sleepless nights ahead of him as Sora couldn't help but sigh and look up into the sky.

* * *

"_**Well there goes my vacation plans...**_" Sora simply thought

* * *

**MAKOTO POV**

* * *

As the airship slowly closed in on Kagutsuchi, I suddenly felt a pit run down my stomach. Just what is this bad feeling am I getting right now? Was I anxious over the fact that I was on a clock with my memories? Will I even find Sora in time? Just thinking about forgetting him again brings a chill down my spine again as I clutched the necklace he gave me that day in the Academy. I don't want to forget him.. I never want to forget anyone close to me ever…

"**Dear guests, we are soon approaching the 13****th**** Hierarchical city of Kagutsuchi. Please strap on your seat belts and prepare for landing.**" The air stewardess said as orders are orders. As I slowly strapped on my seat belt, a guy simply walked past me and bumped my arm in the process."**Hey! Watch it you!**" I said as the person simply just looked at me before bowing and walking back to his seat… that was just weird…

And he dropped something onto the ground as well...'_**Huh? What's this?**_' I thought as I picked it up. At first I was going to wait until the airship landed for me to give him back this note but my gut was telling me to just read it.,, fuck it, I guess I got nothing to lose, might as well read what's inside. What I found reading it… astonished me. "**Miss Nanaya, You are in danger. Don't go through the NOL checkpoint, you are currently pending for an arrest warrant on your name.**"

What the hell… Who the fuck was that guy? How does he know who I am? And why am I pending arrest from the NOL? Could it be because of the information I got from the wreckage in Ibukido? I can't just sit idly by with this information, I need to contact Professor Kokonoe immediately as I pulled out my phone and dialed the number that the professor herself gave me."**Kokonoe? Do you have access to the NOL database by any chance?**" I asked as the professor was typing on her keyboard.

"**I have limited access to it. What do you need?**" Kokonoe questioned as I cleared my throat a bit before continuing. "**Can you check the NOL's pending warrant database? I may be compromised...**" I asked as silence greeted me for a while. What could possibly be running through the professor's mind? I mean she's probably busy with her own thing right now and doesn't need me adding more onto her plate in the process…

"**Who told you that?**" Kokonoe questioned as that's all I needed to hear for me to know I had her attention. "**Someone tipped me off… anyways can you send me a blueprint of the Kagutsuchi Port? Once I get the plans, I can find my own way out.**" I explained as my phone immediately vibrated, telling me that she's sent me the blueprints like I had asked. "**Just to let you know, the location you're meeting Tager at has been changed. Tager met with the person you're looking for and nearly got his ass kicked out of him in the process.**" Kokonoe explained as I couldn't believe what I had just heard.

"**I understand, just give me the new location soon...as for where I am staying for the night… I guess I will have to make due huh.**" I said as Kokonoe simply gave me a grunt on her side of the call as I couldn't help but sigh a little when she did that. "**Thanks for everything again Professor...just keep me updated about Sora okay.**" I explained before hanging up the call. God dammit Sora… you just know how to cause so much trouble. As I lay my head on my seat's headrest, I cannot but think about one thing...

* * *

**...Is there any possibility that this could become even worse…**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING IN THIS FINE DAY!? Well, another busy month awaits me so expect chapters to either take a little while longer to come out or for me to try and squeeze in some time to write as much as I can. I promise you that you guys will get your twice a month so don't worry about that. Even if it kills me, I will make sure you guys are kept up with your reading.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!? WHAT IS HAZAMA GOING TO DO TO SORA OR MAKOTO WHEN HE FINDS THEM!? WILL SORA AND MAKOTO BE ABLE TO FIND EACH OTHER IN TIME!? AND WILL GET EVEN WORSE FOR OUR DUO!? Well if you are a fan and avid reader of Blazblue's story, then you will know that things will get much worse from this point on.**


	14. Canon 13: Night Of Memories

( A NEW CANON HAS ARRIVED! Let us see where the tides of fate take us to right now.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 13

Ronin-Gai, All Sora knew about Ronin-Gai was that it housed a lot of Ikarugans who ran away after the war and had turned the once abandoned district into their own home. However Sora didn't really much about that at the moment, his mind was simply focused on reaching the destination he was to stay at for the night. "_**I've got to be getting closer now...**_" Sora mumbled to himself as he looked around for a candy store sign that he could walk into and ask.

Soon, he reached the candy store in question and knocked on the door as a clerk opened for him. "**Hello there. Are you aware that the store is closed right now?**" The clerk asked as Sora took a brief moment to think about the phrase he was supposed to say to ensure he was at the right place before remembering, "**I know. it's just I want to know where is the best place in Ronin-Gai to get hard candy?**" Sora said as the clerk paused for a moment before gesturing for Sora to enter.

"**Your room has been prepared for you to stay in ****Mr Minakaze. Just know that it's for tonight. We don't have a room prepared for you the next night yet.**" The clerk said as Sora simply nodded his head. "**Thanks. Tell me what's the current situation here in Ronin-Gai.**" Sora questioned as the clerk escorted him to the top floors of the candy store which are normally meant for just employees only. The room that Sora was escorted into looked rather different from what the candy store looked like.

It was a simple room, with a cabinet, table, chair and futon for one person to stay in. "**Ronin-Gai's alright right now. Just be careful around here. In Ronin-Gai, the Ikarugan ninjas and their leader, Bang Shishigami are in charge here and while they claim they are peacekeepers, they won't hesitate to use force to bring you down if you are caught.**" The clerk warned as Sora scratched his head. "**Of course, it's the people who ****want peace that are willing to fight.**" Sora said as the clerk nodded her head.

"**The shower's at the end of the hallway if you need it. If there's anything else you need, don't hesitate to let me know.**" The clerk said as Sora simply nodded his head, that being the signal for her to leave as he took a deep breath and placed the Rev blade the wall beside the futon. He has had a long day, from meeting with the Red Devil to meeting a green haired snake from Intelligence to finding out Makoto Nanaya is going to become a wanted criminal soon. Sora needed this peace and quiet to process the events that had happened otherwise he would simply struggle to make logical sense with the world around him.

"_**To think all of this is happening all because Makoto decided to steal some information...**_" Sora said to himself as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the pill bottle containing red pills. "_**And there's still the question as to what Tager was doing with these pills... I hope that he doesn't need them urgently.**_" Sora said to himself as he scratched his head and placed it on the table, rubbing his forehead a few times before looking back at the pill bottle.

"_**I better make sure I find Tager as soon as possible so I can give him this... but now that I think about it, giving a pill bottle is rather low priority when I need to find Makoto...**_" Sora said as he opened the window and looked outside, greeted by the moon cast over the sky as Sora stared blankly into the city, his eyes not particularly focused on anything as he couldn't help but keep staring at the moon.

"_**The moon's out tonight... just like that day...**_" Sora mumbled to himself as he clenched his necklace tightly, thinking about Makoto at that moment. The way the full moon was out glowing brightly in the sky reminded Sora of Prom Night, the last night he spent as a student in Torifune before he went back to Otsu. The last night he ever saw Makoto before she started working for the NOL as Sora closed his eyes and simply began to reminiscence...

* * *

**Reminisce about the good old days...**

* * *

**FLASHBACK**

* * *

Sora was standing by the balcony where the party was taking place, wearing a simple black suit with a black tie as prom is considered a formal event. The only difference with his outfit was that he had folded the left sleeve up since his arm was missing and he had untucked his smart shirt so he didn't need to feel the shirt riding up his pants. Being at such formal events was foreign to him as he heard the footsteps of someone approaching behind him.

"**Huh... Didn't know you were going to be here.**" A voice said as Sora turned around and looked at the person who greeted him. His red hair had a faint trace of a black streak running across him as he wore a simple red prom suit. "**And you look comfortable wearing a suit Hunter.**" Sora said as Hunter scratched his head, wondering what he should say next. "**I mean... I was Noel's butler for a while so...yeah...**" Hunter said as Sora simply nodded his head hearing that.

"**And you are dating her... isn't the golden rule of working not to date your boss?**" Sora said as Hunter couldn't help but cough a little bit before scratching his head. "**Noel's not my boss...but more of someone I want to keep close...**" Hunter explained as Sora simply closed his eyes, listening to what Hunter had to say as Hunter waited for a response only to not receive anything. "**I mean... what about you and Makoto? You both are really close.**" Hunter said as Sora simply nodded his head but didn't say a word, allowing Hunter's mind to wonder about a lot of things.

"**Well...We are friends...close friends to add. But that's about it.**" Sora said as he kept up the facade of keeping both his and Makoto's relationship a secret. "**But don't you think that closeness would make you want to be closer to Makoto?**" Hunter questioned as Sora couldn't help but scratch his head a bit. "**Maybe...but it's too late now. Tomorrow I am leaving Torifune and I am going to start trying to find some work.**" Sora explained as Hunter simply sighed, deciding to leave it at that.

"**In any other case... have you prepared the farewell speech you're going to give... Mr Hero of the Black Lotus War.**" Hunter said as this time it was Sora's turn to sigh. He had completely forgotten about the fact that he was supposed to give a speech to everyone for his contribution in the Black Lotus War and for finishing off the boss. "**All they want from me is to give them some good PR press and smile... I would refuse but Jin and Kagura insist this time...**" Sora explained as Hunter couldn't help but scratch his head at that.

"**I know... I am just glad I am not doing a speech myself. I would most likely crumble under the pressure... also I hate giving speeches.**" Hunter said as soon, both Sora and Hunter heard footsteps approaching their direction. "**There you two are! We were wondering how long you two were planning to spend outside.**" A blond haired girl said as the light blue dress she was wearing matched her hair as Hunter smiled.

"**Sorry about that Noelie, We were just about to head back in... I'm guessing the party's almost over." Hunter said as Noel smiled and hugged him. "****Almost. The dance is going to start soon.**" Noel said as Sora noticed Makoto looking at him, fidgeting as she tugged a bit on her black dress as Noel smiled. "**Come on Hunty. Let's go in and start dancing.**" Noel said as she pulled Hunter back into the room, leaving Sora and Makoto with each other as the both of them stared at each other.

"_**So...How do I look Sora?**_" Makoto asked as soon as both Hunter and Noel were away from sight, lost in the sea of people that the party contained. "_**I have to say... that dress looks good on you Makoto.**_" Sora commented as Makoto couldn't help but giggle as she leaned over the balcony and looked down to see the floor in front of her as Sora couldn't help but smile. "_**Want to go? They are going to be dancing all night long and we aren't going to get privacy at this place.**_" Sora said as Makoto couldn't help but smile when she heard that.

"_**If that is the case...**_" Makoto soon took off her hells and wrapped herself around Sora's neck as he knew what he had to do. Holding onto to her firmly with just his arm. He leapt off the balcony as Makoto clung onto Sora tightly as they both soared in the sky for a bit before Sora landed on his feet, rolling forward as Makoto's bushy tail helped to soften the landing. "T_**o think that last year I was afraid of doing stuff like this.**_" Makoto said as she wore her black heels once again.

"_**Then again, I wouldn't have thought by the end of my school life, I would be dating someone and have already fought in my first war... Talk about Life giving you a card you never expect.**_" Makoto said as Sora chuckled a little bit hearing that. "_**Me too Makoto... Well... except the whole war thing. Other than that...I agree.**_" Sora said as Makoto giggled hearing that. Soon the both of them walked down the dark streets of Torifune back to their dorm room, their hands entangled with each other as they were making the best of these final moments together.

"_**Say Makoto... how good are you with public speaking?**_" Sora questioned as Makoto looked at him for a moment before smiling. "_**Someone forgot to prepare for their speech tomorrow huh.**_" Makoto said as Sora blushed a bit before scratching his head. "_**I was busy getting something and it took so much of my time I forgot I had to do that alright... I just don't want to make myself look like an idiot that's all.**_" Sora said as Makoto giggled, understanding what he was thinking at this point.

"_**In that case, why don't we write that speech together. Two heads are better than one.**_" Makoto suggested as Sora couldn't help but smile at that. "_**You are eager to do this kind of thing. Is the chance of getting promoted to Intelligence getting you excited enough to actually take other things besides punching?**_" Sora said as Makoto giggled before wrapping herself around Sora's arm. "_**Well...something like that.**_" Makoto said as Sora noticed that his arm was inside Makoto's arm.

'_**Wait a minute... Could it be... she's doing the power play right now?!**_' Sora thought as the way she assertively slipped her breasts into his arm told him that she was trying to get him into the mood. '_**She...she really wants it today huh...**_' Sora thought as he took a deep breath and stopped walking before looking at her in the eyes. "_**I...I am guessing that you want to do it before we go huh...**_" Sora said without holding back as Makoto herself paused for a moment before realizing what he meant.

'_**Oh...OH SHIT...Sora... you savage...**_' Makoto thought as she wanted to do it... but she wanted a more...romantic vibe about it. After all, she's about to give her virginity to the man she loved and she didn't want to be too assertive about it. '_**Am...Am I going too hard? Am I being too aggressive right now? Should I rethink my actions right now?**_' Makoto thought as Sora could shee the fluster on her face as he noticed a building that they could go into.

'_**Well...in that case... I should make the first move...right?**_' Sora thought as he pointed at the building. "_**Should we spend the night in there?**_" Sora said as Makoto looked at the direction that Sora was pointing and her face nearly paled as Sora was pointing towards a love hotel of all things. '_**Oh my god Sora... I know I look like I am desperate but stop please before I die!**_' Makoto thought as it took her a while for her to respond.

* * *

And a while it took as before Makoto could protest, she was sitting on a heart shaped bed in the middle of a brightly lit pink room as Sora was using the restroom. '_**Oh god...I am going to die.**_' Makoto thought as Sora exited out of the bathroom before looking at her and noticing her blushing face. '_**Woah…**__**.she looks pretty when embarrassed… Wait a minute… How am I supposed to approach this now.**_' Sora thought as both he and Makoto stared at each other for a little while before Sora made the first move.

* * *

Sora:_**….So… do we just jump right into it?**_

Makoto: _**H-Huh? Jump right into it?**_

Sora:_** You know… we just do it right now.**_

Makoto:_** W-W-WOAH COWBOY! I KNOW YOU MIGHT BE EAGER BUT AT LEAST SPARE MY HEART FROM A HEART ATTACK!**_

Sora: _**What do you mean by that? Are you saying that...the thing can cause a heart attack?**_

Makoto: _**N-N-NO! It's not that! It's just…. HOOHH… I didn't expect that we were just going to do it in a place like this right now!**_

* * *

'_**What are you saying Makoto! THIS IS YOUR BIG BREAK! YOU AREN'T GOING TO DIE A VIRGIN BUT YOU'RE FUCKING IT UP LIKE THE VIRGIN YOU ARE!**_' Makoto thought as her mind was simply racing. Sora was trying to keep a calm face himself but he too couldn't help but think about what he needed to do. '_**How...How do I do this? I mean...Do I need two hands to do the deed? Or is she supposed to… Oh why can't the sex ed book I got tell me how one is supposed to initiate the art of sex?**_' Sora thought as the both of them continued to stare at each other before Sora decide that he was going to make the first move.

"_**I guess...when you put it like that….I can understand what you mean.**_" Sora said as he slowly took off his jacket and tossed it towards the chair. "_**I know right… I mean for the longest time yeah I may have been the perverted one but just like everyone else I am a virgin at the end of the day and I want to make sure that I don't fuck over my first….time….**_" Soon Makoto slowly came to a stop as she was staring right at Sora Minakaze's bare chest as he had taken off his shirt off, allowing Makoto to see his well developed and muscular body as he continued to stare at her.

"_**Well.. at least it's good to know that you can be girly despite behaving like a man at times.**_" Sora said as Makoto was about to take offense to that but couldn't as her eyes were simply glued upon his chest, her hand slowly reaching out nervously as Sora couldn't help but feel his heartbeat faster than ever. '_**Please...Please say or do something right now Makoto. This silence is killing me right now.**_' Sora thought as Makoto's finger finally touched Sora's left pec, allowing her finger to trace around his nipple.

"_**I...I...I can be a woman too you know….I'm not all just fists and brawn….**_" Makoto said as she couldn't help but take a deep breath as she soon got off the bed and sat on his lap. "_**And you know what...Tonight's the night I prove it to you.**_" Makoto said, trying to be confident to hide her nervousness but Sora couldn't help but smile a bit hearing that. "_**I know you must be nervous as all hell Makoto… I am too… I mean...we did say we want to lose our virginities before we leave the Academy...**_" Sora said, trying to help Makoto relax but also himself as Makoto took a small deep breath.

"_**But trying to lose our virginites is proving to be much more difficult that fighting a whole group of armed and dangerous mercenaries who could have killed us if we fucked up… who would have guessed that Life's greatest challenge is one's first time.**_" Makoto said as Sora couldn't help but chuckle hearing that. "_**Guess that shows regardless of what happens….we are still noobs at something.**_" Sora said as he grabbed Makoto with his one arm and placed her on the bed with him on top of her.

"_**Y-Yeah...I guess so.**_" Makoto said with a smile on her face as soon any nervousness they had felt before vanished and the two of them began to kiss each other as gently as possible. "_**Say Sora… want to think about your speech while we do it?**_" Makoto suggested as Sora couldn't help but laugh at that. "_**I would probably be spending more time trying to make sure you are satisfied than write some stupid speech I can just speak out from my mind. Let's just ignore everything that has happened so far and just focus on each other Alright.**_" Sora said as Makoto giggled for a bit before grabbing Sora's hand and placing it on her dress's zipper.

"_**Of course Sora. You are right after all**_." Makoto said as she slowly with Sora's hand, unzipped her dress as the both of them just continued to stare at each other, no longer thinking about what they were about to do and more how they wanted each other to be happy. As the night went on, Sora and Makoto spent the longest time together that no other couple could have in the Academy. For that one night… they weren't students in the Academy… people who were about to graduate and join the working force…

* * *

**...They were just Sora and Makoto...two people who loved each other dearly…..**

* * *

As Sora snapped himself out of his daydream, he couldn't help but realize that he had accidentally fallen asleep near the window. "_**God I got to stop doing that… it's a fucking bad habit.**_" Sora said to himself as he rubbed his forehead a little bit. To think that he would just fall asleep randomly while standing simply told him that his day had been an action packed one and that his mind needed to process everything that happened. "_**Still..I wonder why I thought about that of all things...**_" Sora said as he reached down to his crotch, simply wondering why his mind thought of that of all things.

"_**In any other case...I better make sure I get some much needed rest.**_" Sora mumbled as he laid himself on top of futon and closed his eyes. Soon he felt his body become worn out as his previous daydream had left his body in a half state of sleep and awake. "_**Tomorrow's going to be another busy day… I can feel it already...**_" Sora said, clutching on the pendant as he did so as his eyes finally closed and his mind finally went to sleep. One thing certain in his mind…

* * *

**...Makoto comes first….**

* * *

As Sora's mind went towards Makoto, Makoto herself was in the middle of trying to get the fuck out of the Kagutsuchi Port undetected. As soon as she had gotten off her airship, she immediately took cover under the night's sky and made sure nobody saw her leaving the airship in the first place. She couldn't believe she had to already sneak her way into a hierarchical city, thinking that she would have had some time to get into the city before she got wanted.

"_**Stupid NOL and their rapid response to wanted individuals… I hope they don't have a stupid bounty picture like what they did to Ragna the Bloodedge.**_" Makoto complained as she had managed to find her way into the luggage hold of the Kagutsuchi port, using that as her chance to get closer into the city without walking through immigration. Despite how much she was complaining, Makoto remained focused on her objective, get out of the port, meet up with Tager and then find Sora.

As Makoto peeked her head out a pile of luggage, she noticed a group of NOL officials approach her direction as she immediately sank back in the luggage. "**Still, to think that they would be here of all places.**" An NOL official said as Makoto decided to pay attention to their conversation. "**I know right, to think that the Zero Squadron is coming here… Ragna the Bloodedge really must have everyone on edge right now.**" His friend said as Makoto raised her eyebrows at that.

"**What do you think? With that attack on the NOL headquarters, it's a miracle he didn't destroy the cauldron. NOL aren't going to take risks though, they are sending the best of the best to guard the NOL headquarters.**" The official said as they stopped walking and looked at each other. "**The best of the best in the Zero Squadron? Who are those exactly?**" the officer said as Makoto knew she should probably pay attention to what going to be said next as that may alter her plans.

"**Well...first of all, there's Meifang LapisLazuli. The Imperator's loyal lap dog and the head of the Zero Squadron herself.**" The Official said as Makoto couldn't help but feel her blood freeze when she heard that. "**Hey don't say that! She can easily kill you without even taking a single step!**" The officer said as the official raised his hand towards him. "**I know officer, but fearing her will do nothing for us. she's an asset for the NOL's greater goals...despite her methods.**" The official explained as Makoto couldn't believe what she was hearing.

'_**Meifang LapisLazuli… of all people it had to be her...**_' Makoto simply thought. Meifang simply had the reputation of being one of the scariest women in the world. She potentially has both the fighting ability and prowess to best even the Mad Dog, Azrael himself in combat and that was a proposition that did not sit well with Makoto at all. "**So who else is tagging along with Meifang? I mean it's good to know that Meifang's going to be doing this but who else could keep her in check?**" The officer asked as Makoto shook her head and focused once more on the conversation.

"**Well…**** apparently, it's their recent transfer, the Yayoi girl.**" The Moment Makoto heard Tsubaki's name, she couldn't help but feel the cold chill that was on her back become a deathly blizzard. '_**Tsubaki...Tsubaki Yayoi?… No… it can't be...**_' Makoto thought as she didn't want to believe what she was hearing. "**Yeah… she transferred over to the Zero Squadron when Jin Kisaragi left his post. Probably to bring him down herself I guess.**"

The more Makoto listened in the conversation, the more she felt sick to her stomach. The memories of the events she was unfortunately a part of had remained in her mind and in those events, Tsubaki had quit her own post to join the Zero Squadron and chase after Jin. '_**I couldn't protect that Tsubaki from what was going on… I need to protect my Tsubaki before something terrible happens… I can just feel it.**_' Makoto thought, a determination growing within her as the guards soon left, allowing her to leave her hiding spot as she pulled out her phone and began to look at her group chat history with both Noel and Tsubaki, wondering if they had left any posts.

'_**God now that I think about it… I have been so focused on trying to find Sora I completely forgot about checking up on Noel and Tsubaki… I just hope I haven't missed any important details that will bite me in the ass.**_' Makoto thought as much to her relief or horror, the group chat had not been updated since her last post on the last day of the year 2199. '_**Everyone's ignoring each other… What if Noel's here too? Oh god… what's going on in Kagutsuchi? It's like one massive shit show is about to begin...**_' Makoto thought as she began to piece together things in her mind.

From the fact that Ragna the Bloodedge is in Kagutsuchi, Meifang LapisLazuli was on her way to Kagutsuchi with Tsubaki in tow, Noel not even responding to the group chat and some omnipotent being trying to wipe away everyone's memories of her boyfriend, Makoto couldn't help but feel a bit overwhelmed at the ridiculousness of the events that just happened to be surrounding her were. '_**I cannot afford to lose focus right now… I need to make sure that Sora's safe **__**first before I go for everyone else**__**.**_' Makoto thought as her feet soon took her, her determination now growing to find out what was going on with her friends.

Soon Makoto managed to sneak her way out of the port, taking a huge sigh of relief as she wondered where she was going to sleep for the night. She was told by Kokonoe that she was not going to provide her with a room so she needed to find the least, a cheap ass motel that she can stay in. '_**Even though I am a high value target, Kokonoe still finds a way to cheap out… talk about being a cheapskate.**_' Makoto wondered as she looked at the map of Kagutsuchi to figure out where she should head towards.

'_**I could try in Orient town… but there's also Ronin-Gai. I could visit Mr Shishigami and ask him to have me in his...Oh wait, different Bang… so he won't know who the hell I am.**_' Makoto thought as she sat herself on the chair and sighed greatly. Her luck was literally running out and she might be facing the fact that she would be sleeping out on the streets by herself. As she lamented the fact that her next nap may just been on a cold wooden bench, her senses suddenly went to high alert.

She could feel a huge blood lust flow in the air. It was enough to simply paralyze a person dead in their tracks and Makoto couldn't help but feel her body tense in the process. "**Who's there!?**" Makoto shouted as her readied herself to punch whoever was going to go after her. However she was too late to react as her tail was suddenly grabbed and Makoto tripped to the ground. Makoto yipped a bit but she couldn't do anything as Makoto squirmed helplessly on the ground.

"**Oh I missed this tail. It's been so long since I've stroked this fluffy bushy tail.**" A soft voice spoke as Makoto's chill was soon immediately melted and a great relief suddenly washed itself upon her. Her head turned towards the direction of the person who was responsible for groping her tail and she couldn't help but hold back her tears as she bit her lip tightly, holding in her relief as a blond haired girl stared right at her and noticed the tension that was in her face.

"**What's the matter Makoto? You look sad for some reason.**" The girl asked as Makoto sniffed greatly before shaking her head before hugging the blond haired girl into her grasps. "**I****t's...It's absolutely nothing Noelie, it's just… I've had a really long week.**" Makoto simply said as the blond haired girl simply known as Noel Vermilion simply smiled hearing and hugged Makoto back, responding to her warmth.

"**I...I don't know if I can understand… but I have had a rough week myself so I guess we both really need each other right now.**" Noel said as Makoto simply nodded her head on Noel's shoulders, smiling in the process as they both looked at each other, the two close friends relieved to see each other at this very moment as Makoto scratched her head. "**I am going to take a guess that you yourself have been quite busy**." Makoto said as Noel simply nodded her head.

"**Do you have a place that you can stay? We should sleep together for the night and catch up on old times.**" Noel said as Makoto couldn't help but pause hearing that as she thought about what Noel had said before nodding her head. "**You're right Noelie, we should definitely catch up right now… especially since there are so many things that I want to tell you right now.**" Makoto said as she stood up, Noel dusting her off.

"**But I can't really sleep with you right now… I still got business that I need to handle.**" Makoto explained as Noel looked down on the ground, saddened as Makoto took a deep breath and placed her hands on Noel's shoulders. "**But that doesn't mean we cannot speak with each other right now. I have so much to talk with you right now and I don't right just ending our meeting like this.**" Makoto said as Noel simply smiled hearing.

"**Then let's get going to a quiet place so we can talk… I am in a bit of a pickle myself and I cannot afford to be spotted by any NOL officials right now.**" Noel explained as Makoto couldn't help but giggle hearing that. '_**Oh boy… what did Noel do this time that she needs to hide from the NOL… Then again I am hiding from the NOL so there's a bit of a relief that comes with that.**_' Makoto thought as she soon followed Noel, eager to catch up with one of her closest friends…

* * *

**...Hoping to find some sort of relieve to the nightmare she was currently in…**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING IN THIS FINE DAY!? As you may have noticed, throughout the story I may have been using names that to those who may have only read the story of Blazblue through the main games may not be aware of. Well, to make things more interesting for the story and because I thought they would fit, I have decided to include some characters from the extended world of Blazblue, Characters like Meifang LapisLazuli who exists in Variable Heart. If you want to know more about what happens to her I would recommend reading Variable Heart or looking up a wiki about her.**

**If you are wondering why I am saying this now it's pretty simple, I plan to not follow the main stories down to a tee, The events will still flow in a similar manner but since this is an alternate timeline, I am able to change them around to suit my story's needs. Sometimes I am glad that Blazblue has a complicated timeline because it just makes writing stories about it so much easier. Also my uni work is slowly dying down so I will finally be able to breathe once November rolls in so WOOHOO.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!? WILL MAKOTO TELL NOEL ABOUT WHAT SHE FOUND OUT!? WHAT IS TSUBAKI DOING IN KAGUTSUCHI WITH A WOMAN INFAMOUS FOR HER BRUTALITY!? WILL SORA BE ABLE TO FIND MAKOTO IN TIME BEFORE THE NOL DOES!? ALL THESE QUESTIONS AND MORE WILL BE ANSWERED IN THE NEXT CANON SO STAY TUNED!**


	15. Canon 14: From Night To Morning

(A New Canon has begun. What will see unfold in this series of events? Will they be as pleasant as last time or will something else happen to ruin all of that? Only one way to find out.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 14

Makoto was seated in a park bench, feet waving in the air as she had a lot of thoughts running through her mind. But before she could begin to think of what is going on, Makoto immediately heard the sounds of footsteps coming her way. "**I'm back Makoto! I got you that energy drink you like to drink back in the Academy.**" Noel said as Makoto raised her head to look at her friend. Her hair was hidden underneath a beret as she wore the NOL coat around her body.

"**T-Thanks Noellie. I appreciate that.**" Makoto said as she took the drink off Noel's hand and opened it. "**So... What brings you here to Kagutsuchi of all places Makoto? Didn't you say you would be busy with work?**" Noel asked as Makoto couldn't help but chuckle hearing that. "**What about you Noel? You said you were in big trouble yourself. Did you do something that you ran to Kagutsuchi? Hmmm?**" Makoto questioned, trying to be playful in an attempt to cheer herself up as Noel remained quiet for a bit before sitting down right next to her.

"**Well... I'm not running from somewhere to Kagutsuchi but something happened while I was here that caused me to stay here.**" Noel explained as Makoto couldn't help but raise her eyebrow hearing that. "**What do you mean by that?.. you don't sound happy for some reason Noellie.**" Makoto questioned as Noel twiddled her fingers for a little bit around her bottled water as she closed her eyes for a brief moment, thinking about what she should say to Makoto at this point.

"**W-Well... I was given orders by the NOL to apprehend Ragna the Bloodedge who's still here in Kagutsuchi... but something happened while I was here...**" Noel said as Makoto couldn't help but feel something was wrong while she spoke those words. "**I...To put things simply... I have been through a lot and I don't know what I should do anymore...**" Noel said as Makoto simply listened to her as she twiddled her thumbs around her drink.

"**Well...if there's anything on your mind right now Noellie... you can just say it to me. I don't mind listening to what you have to say. We are friends after all right?**" Makoto asked as she noticed Noel smile hearing that as suddenly she felt Noel hug her tightly. "**I...I will I promise...it's just... I'm still trying to digest everything myself so I don't know how I am going to say what I want to say.**" Noel explained as Makoto placed her chin on her can before realizing something.

"**Say Noellie, did you happen to see that big beam of light to hit Kagutsuchi?**" Makoto questioned as Noel looked surprised to hear that. "**A big beam of light? What do you mean by that?**" Noel questioned as Makoto was able to piece together some things from that. "**Well... apparently, a huge beam of light struck Kagutsuchi and is causing an uproar with NOL command...**" Makoto said as she made up the part about the NOL being thrown into chaos by a beam of light though if she had to take a guess, they were most certainly were.

"**N-No not really... I was underneath the city when it all happened...**" Noel said as Makoto was beginning to see a bigger picture build in front of her. "**You don't think it's Take-Mikazuchi Makoto ****with the way you're describing how powerful that blast of light was****?**" Noel said as Makoto's eyes widened hearing that. "**You mean that Nox Nyctores which was so powerful it got sealed as quick as it was used during the Dark War?**" Makoto questioned as Noel nodded her head at that.

"**Looks like the lessons that Tsubaki taught us are still in our heads after all these years.**" Noel said as Makoto couldn't help but smile at that. "Y**eah... Tsubaki's lessons alright. When it was just me, you, Tsubaki and... Hunter...**" Makoto said as Noel couldn't help but smile sadly hearing the name Hunter. "**Yeah... to think that life was so simple back in those days..**." Noel said as both her and Makoto began to reminisce about a different time...a time where things were much simpler...

* * *

**...Where their paths were much more clear...**

* * *

**FLASHBACK**

* * *

In the hallowed halls of the Academy, students were expected to study as much as they can before they become fully fledged soldiers of the NOL academy. Thus, in order to make sure their student's minds are sharp, first year students are given an exam after one months worth of studying in the Academy. Thus this first exam was not really well received by the students... especially with Makoto and Hunter as they groaned on their seats in the Library.

"**Can you two not moan so loudly? We are in a library after all.**" Tsubaki said with a stern voice as Makoto and Hunter looked at her with a bit of despair on their faces. "**But what kind of school makes their students do an exam one month into their education?! That is so messed up!**" Makoto whined loudly as that earned her a couple of hisses at her direction as Tsubaki looked at her sternly. "**I mean..I get that it's a general exam to test how much we know but still...isn't that a bit too extreme.**" Makoto said as Tsubaki sighed and nodded her head.

"**Rules are rules Makoto. Now then... have you been taking notes?**" Tsubaki asked as this immediately made Makoto whistle a little before shaking her head. "**I kinda need a refresher Tsubaki-sensei... So can you...**" Before Makoto could finish her sentence, she felt a paper fan immediately descend down upon her head as Tsubaki's eyes immediately narrowed. "**You better make sure you study hard for this quiz otherwise I will make sure that you don't get any chestnut parfaits for the next month.**" Tsubaki threatened as Makoto's face immediately turned to that of terror.

"**Noellie! You got to help me! Tsubaki's being a demon again!**" Makoto said, hoping Noel would be on her side but noticed that Noel herself was kind of busy with Hunter herself. "**This...This doesn't make any sense...how on earth does this equate to this?**" Hunter bemoaned, doing mathematics with Noel who was trying her best to help him. "**Well.. I noticed that you aren't using the equation correctly... so maybe try changing a few things to get the result you are looking for?**" Noel questioned as Hunter placed his head onto the table.

"**Hey Makoto want to change topics with me... this math has me all confused.**" Hunter asked as Makoto simply shook her head hearing that. "**Sorry Hunter. If I tried to do those questions myself, I don't think I will survive myself... I am struggling to understand what Take-Mikazuchi is.**" Makoto complained as Noel immediately picked up her book to try and see if she could find out what Take-Mikazuchi is for Makoto.

"**Take-Mikazuchi, The most famous Nox Nyctores, Said to be used during the dark war by the Six Heroes in order to slay the Black Beast. However it's power was too strong and thus it was sealed away somewhere, the knowledge of it's location wiped from existence.**" Tsubaki explained as Makoto tilted her head hearing that. "**Nox Nyctores... There was more than just Take-Mikazuchi right?**" Makoto questioned Tsubaki nodded her head.

"**Yes, though we don't know the exact number, various Nox Nyctores were created during the dark war but only 9 have been documented so far. They take a massive number of resource, said resources now lost in History.**" Tsubaki explained as Makoto placed her forehead on the table trying to digest all of what she was hearing. "**Besides, these are the general kind of questions a kid at elementary school are expected to know.**" Tsubaki continued as Makoto nodded her head at the table.

"**I know Tsubaki, But I was not put on a scholarship for my smarts but for my physical abilities so give me a break.**" Makoto complained a bit as Tsubaki simply shook her head. "**Why do you think I am giving you a special lesson as a result?**" Tsubaki explained as Makoto couldn't complain about that. "**You're right Tsubaki... I'll just continue trying to study to the best of my abilities.**" Makoto said as this briefly took Noel and Makoto out of their little time thinking about the past to talk more about their current predicament.

* * *

Noel: **Now that I think about it, we spent a lot of days studying at that Library.**

Makoto: **Yeah... we sure did until the Black Lotus showed up.**

Noel: **That is true... but for the longest time, life was simple back then. We were just trying to study for an exam and pass it. After that we would have a bit of a break before we would study once again.**

Makoto: **Yeah... all while me and Hunter died in the process trying to keep up with you two.**

Noel: **Hehehe. That is true... ****Hey do you remember when Jin-sempai came to see us while we were studying.**

* * *

As Noel said those words, Makoto couldn't help but feel a sense of shock suddenly come into her as she remembered that while Jin did show up that day, he was not the only one who did so. "**Yeah... and how Tsubaki spent so much time talking with him from time to time?**" Makoto said, trying to mask her sadness as she had to remind herself that her memories would be different from her friends... after all, everyone else at this point has forgotten about Sora... Sora Minakaze as the flashback continued from Makoto's perspective.

* * *

**FLASHBACK**

**MAKOTO POV**

* * *

As Noel had said before, Jin would sometimes come to the library to see how we were doing with our studies. This all started when we were first studying for our first exam when we heard him walking towards our desk in the first place while we were studying. "**Jin Nii-san!**" Tsubaki said with happiness in her voice as she walked up to him and started having a conversation with him. "**Hehe, talk about eager to meet with someone huh.**" I said as I turned to see Noel and Hunter quietly discussing something with each other, probably questions.

As I sighed a little, I looked to see a white haired man, Sora Minakaze, looking through a couple of books as I decided that a little break from the studies was needed. Since this was our first month, we were basically starting to build a friendship as he placed a book back onto the shelf. "_**What are you doing here Sora?**_" I questioned as Sora looked at me with a surprised look before scratching the back of his head.

"_**Well... I am trying to find books about the Dark war. Even though I am a late attendee, I am still being made to attend the exam so I thought it would be good to read up on it.**_" Sora explained as I couldn't help but chuckle and scratch the back of my head hearing that. "_**Well what do you know, we are doing the same thing... Say, do you want to study with us? It would be better if you had someone you could bounce that knowledge with.**_" I suggested, trying to at least get him acquainted with the others.

Unfortunately, this was when we first me and well... Sora was dealing with his own problems back then... mainly a small bout of Amnesia caused when he caused chaos at the Black Lotus base back then before passing out from blood loss. He was trying to recover from it at the time... not that me or the others were aware of it until much later but that is not important... the important this is that he was a bit reluctant to make friends with us as a result.

"_**Maybe not... I notice that everyone else is well...busy doing their own studies. I am pretty sure I can manage on my own.**_" Sora said to me as I sighed before looking back at the others before I gathered my books. "_**Hey you guys don't mind if I do some personal studying for a bit?**_" I asked as Noel and Hunter simply looked at me with a small smile on ther faces and nodded, understanding that I was probably trying to give them some personal time as I walked back to Sora.

"_**Well, I am free now, Want to study together?**_" I suggested as Sora scratched his head before picking up a couple of books from me. "_**Well at least let me carry some of them for you... so you don't break your back doing so.**_" Sora said as I was about to say something witty in return before I paused, thinking about what that actually meant as he simply shook his head. "_**Trust me... maybe consider some back training. I noticed in our fight that you had a bit of a habit of having a hunched back while you attack... Something I thought you should know.**_" Sora explained before he walked towards an empty table while I tried to shake my embarrassment away.

* * *

"_**I don't need you to tell me that...**_" I mumbled as I took my seat next to him as we began to study together.

* * *

As Makoto finished recollecting her thoughts, that was the same time that Noel had done so. "**Still...I cannot help but apologize for the times we left you alone... we didn't mean to do so...**" Noel explained as Makoto could guess what she meant by that. "**It's alright Noellie, I mean you had Hunter and Tsubaki had Jin. You both had guys to spend time with after all.**" Makoto said as Noel shook her head at that.

"**I still have to apologize for doing so... I mean... we left you by yourself in the process...**" Noel said, Makoto secretly biting her lips at how she wanted to scream at Noel about a person named Sora Minakaze that she had spent time with. She however had to show restraint as she doesn't know what is going to happen if she tried to force Noel to remember who Sora was. What would be the consequences of doing such an action in the first place.

"**It alright... Really Noellie... what's on your mind lately? You seem...rather shook for some reason.**" Makoto said, having noticed the fact that Noel has yet to open her bottle of water as Noel gulped hearing that. Noel spent some time staying silent before she finally found the courage to say what she wanted to say. "**Makoto... a few days ago... I saw Hunter... He changed a lot but it was Hunter! I know it was him!**"

It took a little while for Makoto to realize what Noel had said before she immediately began to think about what to say. '_**Hunter's alive?.. No that can't be... Hunter's been dead for 2 years now... yet Noel sounds so sure of herself...**_' Makoto thought as Noel looked at her, her eyes wanting an answer as Makoto knew she had to give that answer to her. Fidgeting a little at her seat, Makoto wondered what she should say as she took a sip of her drink.

"**...Are you sure it was him Noel?.. You and me both know he's been dead for two years now...**" Makoto said, trying to remain calm and diplomatic as Noel tried to keep her composure around Makoto but was struggling to do so. "**I...I know I sound crazy for saying this and I know you probably think that this is all just one big hallucination or dream from my side... but I saw Hunter Makoto! He's alive and well!**" Noel said, firmness in his voice as this made Makoto think even more.

'_**What am I going to do... Noel's probably been dealing with the grief of losing Hunter the longest out of all of us... but what if she's telling the truth? Do I just go with her and confirm that she's not hallucinating?.. But what about Sora in that case? I still have to find him...**_' Makoto thought as her dilemma began to grow above her. What should she do at this very moment, believe her best friend that one of her other friends that she thought was deceased is actually alive somehow... or dismiss her and try to continue her search for Sora.

'_**In any other case...I don't think I can make a decision without making sure of everything first...**_' Makoto thought as she decided that instead of trying to rush for a decision, she should first try and see what is Noel's goal going to be. "**So...if Hunter's alive... what are you going to do exactly?**" Makoto asked, trying to see what Noel's response would be only for her to remain silent and twiddle her thumbs.

"**I...I honestly don't know... I've just recently come to terms that Hunter was dead and suddenly he shows his face to me once again... Honestly how is anyone supposed to react to that?.. I don't know why I feel so...paralyzed by this...**" Noel said, clutching her bottled water tightly before opening it and gulping it's contents as quick as she could, trying to relax herself as Makoto didn't try to stop her except pat her back when Noel began to cough a bit from drinking too fast.

"**Maybe it's because I am scared of what you are saying is the truth... that I may have hallucinated seeing Hunter in the first place... it felt so dream like in the first place so I don't really know what's true and not anymore... yet at the same time I know it's the truth... I can't deny that truth Makoto...**" Noel continued, her words slowly stuttering as she felt fear creep up her neck as she didn't know how she should feel at this moment.

Normally, one should feel joyful that a loved one is actually alive but for Noel.. she didn't feel that way. She had spent the last two years mourning and grieving over the lost of one of her closest friends and boyfriend. For him to suddenly appear out of nowhere when she had finally managed to overcome said grief was not fair in her eyes. It was as if god himself was trying to punish her with the memories of the one she holds dear to her heart and now that fear was leaving her at an crossroads.

Makoto could see the dilemma that Noel was in... in fact it was quite similar to her own dilemma. They both had people that they truly care for yet they didn't what they should do for them. In Noel's case, it was that she had seen Hunter but no one else knows if she's telling the truth. Meanwhile, Makoto has to deal with a similar problem of hers. "**Hey Noel... you know Sora right?**" Makoto said out loud, hoping to confirm that she was truly the only person who knows about Sora.

"**Sora...I'm sorry Makoto who is that?**" Noel simply replied as that was all Makoto needed to know as she simply shook her head. "**It's nothing Noellie... just a slip of the tongue that's all.**" Makoto explained, knowing that trying to explain things to her friends would only bring even more confusion her way...and even more questions that will need answers for, answers that she has yet to receive herself.

And just like Noel... Makoto was not sure if her memories are true. If it wasn't for the pendant, she would have started to question Sora's existence just like how Noel was right now. '_**Oh who am I kidding. I can't leave Noellie like this... even if I got my own problems.**_' Makoto thought as she took a deep breath before putting a hand on Noel's shoulder. "**Why don't you go and find out?**" Makoto said as Noel looked at her with curiosity in her eyes.

* * *

Noel:** Huh? Go and find out?**

Makoto: **Yeah. There's no point sitting around here and doing nothing. If you believe Hunter's alive... then you should go and find him straight away and make sure of that.**

Noel: **But what about you Makoto? Are you going to be alright while I do that?**

Makoto: **hehe. Don't worry about good old me. I always keep my eyes out. Besides, I got my own thing to do anyways so it's better if we split up to do our stuff**

Noel: **Sure... so where do we meet exactly?**

Makoto: **How about here at the same time right now? It's the most obvious spot since it's near the port and we can just head here straight away.**

Noel:** I see... should I tell Tsubaki about this?**

* * *

The moment Noel mentioned Tsubaki, Makoto felt a chill crawl down her neck. "**Maybe don't contact her right now... All I can say is, Tsubaki's here in Kagutsuchi... but she's here with Meifang LapisLazuli.**" Makoto warned as Noel immediately froze hearing that name. "Y**ou don't mean the leader of the Zero Squadron... then that means Tsubaki's...**" Before Noel could finish her sentence, Makoto simply nodded her head as she stood up.

"**If you're in trouble just like me, chances are, they will be together at all times and if they are, while Tsubaki might hesitate... I don't think Meifang will... I am saying this as your friend... if you see Tsubaki or Meifang... run away alright. You do not want to fight against either of them...**" Makoto warned as Noel understood the meaning behing the warning. '**Tsubaki's still our friend... we can possibly talk it out with her... but if she's with that woman I should be very careful not to meet up with her.**' Noel thought as she stood up as well.

"**Alright Makoto I think I know what I must do now Makoto...**" Noel said, her voice still a bit shaky but a determination simply burned within her. "**That's good to hear Noellie. You better take care of yourself now. I don't want to come in and see you crying again like the old times.**" Makoto joked, trying to lighten the mood as Noel blushed a bit hearing that. "**I've grown up you know... I am not the same Noel you once knew, I am a completely different and changed person I swear.**" Noel retorted as the girls simply giggled as Makoto was getting ready to head off first before Noel placed her hand on her right shoulder.

"**Huh? Is something the matter Noellie?**" Makoto wondered as she turned around to see Noel... standing still for a brief moment as her eyes glowed blue, terrifying Makoto a bit as she swore that Noel's eyes were bright green. Worse yet, she couldn't help but be reminded of the pictures she saw of Noel in that test tube with Relius in the picture, something she still cannot forget no matter how much she tried to do so as Noel simply continued to look at her before snapping to her senses, her eyes returning back to the green hue.

"**...If...If there's anything wrong...Anything at all that I or anyone else can help you with... please don't hesitate to call out for us. I swear that we will help you regardless of how busy we are**." Noel explained as Makoto wondered if this was Noel's attempt to try and give her some comfort. "**I...I will Noellie. Don't worry... I promise if there's anything on my mind... unless I can't do so, I will let you know.**" Makoto said, giving Noel relief as with those two words, they silently walked away from each other, no longer needing to say any other words to each other as much was already said at that point, they both knew what they had to do and their respective tasks...

* * *

**...****As soon, night slowly turned to light.**

* * *

As Night turned to Morning, Sora slowly rose from his slumber. How much sleep did he manage to get in the first place? That did not matter however as Sora knew he had a busy day ahead of him. '_**First of all, find Makoto Nanaya... after that who knows but I should at least focus on that.**_' Sora thought as he stretched a lot, trying to relieve himself of any unnecessary stress that he might have gained from sleep. Looking at the window, Sora wondered if he should take a look at what is going on outside.

'_**I probably should take a look outside. I mean it would not hurt to do so.**_' Sora thought as he slowly stood up, his hand slowly reaching out to open the window as he felt something strange hit him for a moment as it was a sickening feeling, as if something was trying to trap him in the first place. The feeling he had in his gut simply refused to leave as he stepped away from the window, coughing heavily to expunge the sick feeling he was feeling at that moment.

As soon as he did that, a loud shriek could be heard outside as Sora immediately looked outside to see what was going on. What his eyes saw next... was something he couldn't believe he was seeing. '_**What...the fuck.**_' Sora thought as immediately, his blood ran cold and sweat dripped down his forehead as his feet trembled at what he was seeing. Sora Minakaze...just bore witness to Jin Kisaragi... being stabbed in the chest by Tsubaki Yayoi.

"**J-Jin...Nii-san.**" Tsubaki said in a near monotone voice as Jin struggled to register what had just happened to him as he placed his bloody hand right on the wrist that held the blade of the Izayoi... the blade that the Yayoi family has used for years was not used to stab the heir of the Kisaragi family, owner of a Nox Nyctores as Jin struggled to remain on his feet. "**Tsu..Baki.**" Jin said before his feet finally gave way and he dropped to the ground, a pool of blood forming where his body laid as Sora immediately went into action, running towards the Rev Blade resting on the table as he hastily readied his equipment and rushed downstairs to confront Tsubaki.

As His feet touched the top of the stairs, another strange sensation struck him. His stomach felt like it was getting knots turned around as he fought through the sensation and allowed his feet to continue on true, walking towards the front door to confront Tsubaki about what she had just done. Just what had she done? Why would she stab the person that she clearly had feelings for? Why would she shun away her feelings of love just to murder him in cold blood.

"_**Just why would you do such a thing...TSUBAKI!**_" Sora screamed inside as he opened the front entrance of the candy store as had as he could but the scene was completely different from what he was looking at just a few minutes ago. Gone was Jin lying on the ground in a pool of his blood but him sitting down on a bench next to an Ikarugan with an interesting scar on his face, a 55 inch nail with a red cloth strapped behind his back as their heads turned towards his direction as time for that moment simply paused for Sora.

'_**What...the fuck am I even witnessing.**_' Sora thought, unaware he had just experienced phenomena intervention and he was unaffected by it. To him, he thought that he was simply under a powerful hallucination ars magus spell casted onto him by someone. But the longer he stood still, the more he realized that this was reality he was looking at... not a dream as if what he saw was going to happen, he had to stop it from happening.

"_**Jin! You and your friend need to get the hell out of here right now!**_" Sora yelled, only to be taken by surprise when Jin looked at him confused rather than the usual calm and cool expression he normally gave him. "Umm... is something the matter sir? I would suggest putting down your weapon and maybe getting yourself something to eat. It's rather early in the afternoon and lunch is coming soon." The 55 inch nail man said as Sora looked at him even more confused before looking back at Jin.

"**Come on Jin! You and your friend need to go right now!**" Sora yelled, trying to get the severity of the situation in Jin's head, trying to warn him of his sudden and impending death. However Jin simply continued to look at him with confusion as he stood up from his seat, allowing Sora to see that he had a bit of a limp in his form as he simply stared at him in the eyes. "**I'm sorry... Who are you**?" Jin said, a coldness in his voice as Sora couldn't believe what he had just heard.

"**Are you kidding me right now Jin? It's me! Sora!**" Sora yelled, walking towards Jin as Jin simply continued to look at him with the same confusion given to him. "**I apologize, I do not know a Sora in my whole life**." Those words that Jin said cut straight through Sora's heart as he couldn't believe what he had just heard. "**Are you serious right now? Jin! We have no time for games right now!**" Sora yelled, simply shocked by the way that Jin was treating him like a damn stranger.

Even if he and Jin have not talked to each other in the past two years, they still knew each other well enough that Sora had expected at least some sort of friendly gesture from the man, not this cold reception he was currently recieving as he shook his head, ignoring the treatment he was receiving. "**JIN! YOU NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE RIGHT NOW! TSUBAKI'S COMING HERE TO KILL YOU!**" Sora yelled, shocking Jin when he heard those words.

But before either men could say another word. Another pair of footsteps approached their direction. Sora could feel his blood chill the moment his head turned and he saw who was approaching their very direction. "**No... Not right now...**" Sora simply uttered as he was staring at a red haired woman who wore a bizarre white uniform with a large hat that had an eye right in the middle. This was the last thing Sora wanted as the woman... Tsubaki Yayoi simply said a few words.

* * *

"**Jin Nii-sama?"**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING IN THIS FINE DAY!? And I know... a cliffhanger? Really? At the one moment that you would not want a cliffhanger. It may be writing 101 but it's writing 101 for good reason... that and I have recently just finished with my assignment work so I have been trying to take it easy as a result.**

**IN ANY OTHER CASE!? WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!? WHY DID TSUBAKI YAYOI STAB JIN KISARAGI IN THE CHEST!? WILL SORA REALIZE WHAT ON EARTH IS GOING ON IN THE WORLD!? AND JUST HOW WILL HE ACT WHEN HE COULDN'T PREVENT TSUBAKI FROM MEETING WITH JIN!? Well... in any other case, all we can do is simply watch on and see where the path goes next.**


	16. Canon 15: Wilting Bloom

( THE NEW CANON IS OUT!? WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT!? LET US FIND OUT SHALL WE.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 15

Previously on Canon Distortion...

Sora Minakaze woke up the next day ready to go and find where Makoto Nanaya went to. When he checked out of his window however, he saw Jin Kisaragi get stabbed in the chest by Tsubaki, his close childhood friend who might have a crush on him. However when Sora ran down to question what happened, He was shocked to see Jin alive and well. With Tsubaki arriving onto the scene now, How will Sora act with the current situation in front of him.

And now, the continuation of Canon Distortion...

* * *

There were many feelings running through Sora at that moment. Relief that he managed to see two of his friends from the academy. Confusion because he witnessed one of said friends plunge a blade into the other friend's chest and now they were completely fine. And finally... bewilderment for the situation that has been placed in front of him. All he could do at this very moment was take every single thing happening in front of him one step at a time before it completely consumed him inside.

"**You with the sword! Please lay down your weapon right now!**" Tsubaki shouted, noticing Sora holding his rev blade in a manner that suggests he was going to use it in battle. Sora couldn't help but tense up as he didn't know what he should do at this moment. At the next moment, he made up his mind quickly as he refused the offer. "**Afraid I cannot let you do that Tsubaki... Not after I saw you stab Jin at the chest.**" Sora said, surprising both Jin and Tsubaki as the person who was with Jin immediately stepped forward.

"**I may not agree with the NOL usually... but I would recommend that you do as the woman says and please put the weapon down.**" The man asked as Sora looked at the man who had a scar on his face. "**And who might you be?" Sora simply asked as the man cleared his throat. "I am simply a man of justice. BANG SHISHIGAMI!**" Bang exclaimed, crossing his arms in a manly manner as Sora simply looked at him with a bit of a deadpan in his face.

"**Okay Bang... Can you just take Jin out of the way now. I need to have a personal talk with the NOL officer in question please.**" Sora simply said as Bang could see the seriousness that was gleaming through Sora's eyes as he knew that Sora was serious about this. "**Come Jin-dono! There is much to explore around Ikaruga!**" Bang said but Jin refused to follow as he stared right at Tsubaki. "**What are you doing here Tsubaki? Shouldn't you be stationed at Wadatsumi right now?**" Jin questioned as Tsubaki remained quiet for a bit before taking a deep breath.

"**Jin...if you promise to come with me quietly, I can explain everything to you. So please...**" But before Tsubaki could finish her sentence, Sora knew with the knowledge he had, he had to step in before something happened. "**Sorry Tsubaki...I cannot let you kill Jin right now.**" Sora said, surprising everyone in the area as Bang immediately tensed his arms while Jin stared at Tsubaki in surprise as she looked at Sora with equal amounts of shock and confusion.

"**How do you...**" Tsubaki muttered as Sora got in front of Jin. "**Look...I don't know what you are trying to do but I won't let you harm Jin in any way.**" Sora said as he looked at Jin who could see the seriousness in his eyes. "**You have no reason to lie even though I don't know you... and combined with your hesitation means that he's right isn't he...Tsubaki.**" Jin calmly said as Tsubaki continued to remain quiet.

This was not what she had hoped to happen. She had hoped that Jin would quietly follow her so she could tell him to get away from the NOL while he still could. Especially with the fact that her superior from the Zero Squadron, Meifang LapisLazuli was with her on this trip to assess her dedication towards the Zero Squadron. "**You leave me no choice... Jin Kisaragi... please come with me without resistance... You are under arrest for conspiring against the NOL.**" Tsubaki said as Jin's eyes widen at that.

"**I'm Sorry Tsubaki, Like I said before. I cannot let Jin be killed especially by you... that also means not letting him come with you.**" Sora said, walking towards Tsubaki as she readied herself for a fight. "**I don't know who you are but I ask that you do not interfere in official NOL business sir!**" Tsubaki said as brushed that threat to the side, focused on his task of protecting Jin that he failed to notice that Tsubaki didn't know who he was.

"**Like I said Tsubaki... I can't do that...so if you want me to do that, You will have to force me to do so!**" Sora yelled, readying himself into a battle stance to meet Tsubaki head on as Jin was about to stop the fight before collapsing to his knees. "**Jin-Dono! We must leave right now!**" Bang said, placing Jin on his arms. "**Let go of me! I do not need your aid!**" Jin yelled but it got ignored as Bang quickly dragged him out of the area, sensing a fight that was about to begin as Tsubaki looked at him with intensity in her eyes.

"**Then by the power bestowed upon to me by mankind's blue hope. I shall arrest you for getting in the way of an arrest ****sir!**" Tsubaki said, tossing her massive coat to the side, revealing underneath she was wearing the Sealed Armament: Izayoi underneath. Sora couldn't help but be slightly surprised by what he was seeing. "**So...You really are determined to kill Jin that you are going to use the Izayoi again... while being aware of the risks that using that thing**." Sora said, remembering the time he saw Tsubaki use this during the Black War.

"**I am not going to kill Jin... I am going to arrest him. So I cannot help but feel angry for these baseless accusations that you are throwing my way!**" Tsubaki shouted as Sora couldn't help but scratch his head with the hilt of his blade before staring right back at Tsubaki. "**Baseless or not I do not care, I am going to make sure that you don't get your way!**" Sora yelled, lunging towards Tsubaki with the rev blade as he revved the blade once.

"**ENHANCE FINISH!**" The blade yelled as Sora pointed the blade behind him, blasting himself towards Tsubaki and catching her off guard with the sudden rush of speed that Sora had gained, barely able to block the first attack he threw. "**AND YOU SIR! ARE UNDER ARREST FOR ASSAULTING AN NOL OFFICIAL!**" Tsubaki yelled as she retracted the blade of the Izayoi to use the eye shield to bash him right at his chest.

Sora felt the wind briefly get knocked out of his chest as he could feel the experience suddenly kick in and tell him to retreat as soon as possible, Soon he had gained some distance between Tsubaki but knew to be careful as he made sure to do up some reading on the possible abilities of the Izayoi unit. One of the most important techniques that the Izayoi can do is detach the blade into several smaller sections of itself to extend it's reach.

'_**If I have to guess... she will probably try to use the extend function of the Izayoi unit to keep me at a distance.**_' Sora thought as Sora saw the blade extend out to try and strike him. As soon as Sora saw that, he immediately used the Rev blade to blast himself away from the strike as Tsubaki herself was trying to assess the current situation. '**He is using that weird blade of his to instantly accelerate and decelerate himself in order to maintain his distance from me. In that case, I must maintain my offensive.**' Tsubaki thought.

With that, Tsubaki immediately cracked the Izayoi blade back to it's full shape and charged forward. Sora tried to step back but Tsubaki immediately blasted herself towards Sora's path, ready to intercept him as he slammed right into her shield. Tsubaki slowly raised her blade for another attack but before she could finish it, Sora immediately grabbed the shield using the skeletal arm for the rev arm, catching Tsubaki off guard as she had thought she was fighting an amputee.

"**How can you use your disability like that!**" Tsubaki shouted, offended by the way he clearly had a prosthetic but didn't use it. "**YOU'RE ALSO UNDER ARREST FOR FEIGNING A DISABILITY!**" Tsubaki yelled as Sora simply ignored what was being said and pulled the shield back so he could slam the hilt of the Rev Blade right into Tsubaki's chest, pushing her and creating distance once more. '_**Tsubaki's going to stay much closer to me in order to make sure I can't use the Rev Blade's reach... if that's the case.**_'

As Tsubaki extended the blade once again in order to strike Sora, Sora immediately revved the Rev Blade before engaging it's arm mode, spinning it so that it acted as a one time barrier against Tsubaki's next attack before quickly reattaching it right onto the skeletal arm, quickly venting the rev arm to blow seithr right into Tsubaki's face. This gave Sora some time to deliver some quick damage to the woman, landing two solid blows right into her stomach and right shoulder in an attempt to get her to drop the izayoi.

However, in the two years that Sora had not seen Tsubaki, soft was something she had not become as she quickly retaliated with a swift shield bash right into Sora's solar plexuses, causing him to stagger as he quicly retreated in order to make sure she couldn't do anything afterwards. As soon as he did however, he noticed Tsubaki immediately wince in pain as he knew what that meant. '_**The Izayoi's already paying it's price. I've got to try and stop this fight as soon as possible.**_' Sora thought as he quickly revved the rev blade, unlocking it's enhanced finish once again.

"**I am not done yet!**" Tsubaki yelled as she stabbed the Izayoi to the ground after quickly forming an ars magus circle underneath. This caused immediate concern for Sora as suddenly, the ground underneath him glowed with the same ars magus circle, prompting him to evade as the Izayoi blade shot out of the circle and quickly gave chase to him, like a relentless snake. "**You need to stop overexerting yourself Tsubaki! The Izayoi's just going to kill you at the rate you are going!**" Sora yelled, hoping to get it into her mind that she should just stop trying to overexert more power from the blade itself. Unfortunately this would lead to even more problems.

* * *

Tsubaki: **How on Earth do you even know about the Izayoi and who are you to be worried for me Criminal!**

Sora: **I know of the Izayoi because you showed it to me once in the Black War and I decided to do some reading up on it afterwards to make sure my knowledge is up to date. I am also worried for you because you are one of my friends dammit.**

Tsubaki: **I never told you anything about the Izayoi because I have never met you in my life!**

Sora:**...Wait what?**

Tsubaki: **You heard me! I don't know who the hell you are so answer my previous question already! How do you know about the Izayoi Unit and where did you get your information!**

* * *

As soon as Sora heard those words get uttered out of Tsubaki's lips, he couldn't help but freeze a bit in thought. As he did so, Tsubaki did not hesitate to attack, thinking that this was the best opportune time to strike her opponent while he was distracted. Sora however was one very hard to distract as he immediately saw what she was trying to do with his drive and raised the rev arm to catch her blade as it charged towards him.

"**I am going to say this once and once only. I know you because we were friends in the Academy Tsubaki... So either you are playing the most elaborate early april fool's joke since it's been so long since we last me... Or you really have forgotten about me.**" Sora said, his voice becoming a bit soft as the Rev Arm tightly clutched itself onto the Izayoi, unable to break it but stopping it from being able to move altogether.

"**Fine... I don't need an answer right now... I just need to stop you here and now!**" Sora yelled as he pulled the Izayoi, causing it to fly out of Tsubaki's hand as she quickly summoned it back to her to ensure that Sora was unable to use it against her. As soon as she did, Sora got up right at her face and began to throw a series of punches that she struggled to stop with her shield. It was not just raw power that was causing her defense to get thrown side by side, it was technique as well as Sora made sure his punches were aimed at the weakest spots of her guard to optimize his ability to force her guard off.

'**At the rate that this is going! I am going to lose!**' Tsubaki thought as she couldn't afford to lose... not right now. As soon as she realized that loss was coming her way, she immediately retaliated with a ferocity that Sora had rarely seen from the girl in the first place as he always knew her more as the person who loved reading and knowledge instead of the pointless fighting that she was doing right now. "**Tsubaki just stop! Don't you know you are just going to lose to me at the end of the day!? Just give up and let's talk about things right now!**" Sora yelled, hoping that his display of power would have been enough to dissuade Tsubaki from further combat.

"**I am afraid I cannot. I have too much to lose right now! Even more that you could ever imagine!**" Tsubaki yelled back as Sora simply closed his eyes. "**Is that why you picked up the Izayoi in the first place? Because you wanted to protect Noel, Makoto and Jin?**" Sora questioned, now hoping that by bringing up her friends, Tsubaki would back down and listen. Instead of that however, Sora couldn't help but notice her eyes narrow as her grip around the Izayoi tightened.

"**DON'T YOU DARE HURT MY FRIENDS!**" Tsubaki yelled, swinging the blade of the Izayoi unit several times onto Sora, forcing to defend with the Rev Arm by deflecting it to the side or using his palm to do so. As she did so, Sora's mind couldn't help but race with thoughts as to what in the hell was going on. '_**It's like Tsubaki's forgotten everything about me... what on God's name is even going on anymore!**_' Sora thought as his thoughts were cut short when Tsubaki immediately began to gather energy for a distortion heat.

All he knew at that moment was simple, Tsubaki was serious right now about beating him and he needed to beat her before she beats him down and knocks him out and locks him in an NOL holding cell where he would be unable to go amd find Makoto in the mess that she was currently in. Now the more he thought about it, what if Makoto was behaving the same like Tsubaki and Jin were right now? How should he act in that case since she would probably not even remember dating him.

'_**What are you doing Sora! You cannot let yourself get distracted right now! You have to fight regardless of what's going on and you have to fight with everything you got!**_' Sora thought as he immediately revved the Rev Arm before clicking on the brake to disengage it back into the Rev Sword as he revved it again until he heard the words, "**DISTORTION FINISH!**" as soon as it did so, Seithr began to shoot out from the vents all over the blade, alarming Tsubaki as she could now smell the seithr that was in the air.

Before she could think about what that meant, she immediately knew she had to release out her distortion finish before Sora did so as Sora pointed his blade while clutching it with the skeletal arm. '_**Sorry Tsubaki, Unfortunately for you the rev system gathers seithr much quicker than normal means of Ars Magus. Even if you have the Izayoi Unit, I am still faster!**_' Sora thought as quickly released the seithr collected inside the Rev blade while changing it back to the rev arm at the same time.

When he did this, Tsubaki's guard was made wide open. With the viciousness of the attack, Tsubaki was forced to cancel her own distortion due to her concentration being broken at that moment. As that happened, Sora took the opportunity given to him by the opening to blast himself into the air using the left over seithr and quickly revved it once again once he was in the sky. "**DISTORTION FINISH!**" The arm shouted as Sora palmed his hand right towards the sky and blasted himself rapidly towards Tsubaki, extending out his left foot.

"_**MONSUN KURASSHU**_!" Sora yelled as Tsubaki barely pulled her shield back to block the attack, immediately feeling the force strike her chest as she underestimated the power of the distortion that she was being hit with. '**This...THIS POWER IS TOO MUCH! I CAN'T!'** Soon Tsubaki was blasted back from the incredible force that she felt, unable to contain the power anymore as she flew right into the wall, creating a small indent on the wall she crashed to in the process.

As soon as Sora realized that Tsubaki was incapacitated as much as she could be, Sora couldn't help but relax a bit. He didn't mean to hurt Tsubaki, just enough that she would stop fighting as thankfully she was still conscious for him to ask a few questions to her. Before she could fully pull herself out of the rubble, Sora grabbed a piece of rebar and impaled it through Tsubaki's clothes, pinning her to the wall as he looked at her in the eyes.

"**Tell me Tsubaki… what on earth is going on in Kagutsuchi that has you coming here to all places? Why is the NOL sending the Zero squadron here?**" Sora questioned as he made sure to keep his guard up, being aware that of the fact that Tsubaki could suddenly attack him without warning. "**Why should I tell you anything? You are just a mere criminal. I don't have to tell you anything.**" Tsubaki said as Sora scratched his head, a sense of frustration building within him.

"**Stop pretending that I am a bane to your existence and tell me what you know already Tsubaki.**" Sora said, unable to help but feel his feelings being hurt as the more he spoke to her, the more he was beginning to realize that Tsubaki seemed unable to recognize him… even if he had already said her name several times hoping it would cause her to realize that maybe she should remember who he is.

"**I am not pretending to be anyone's bane… I am merely speaking the truth. You're a criminal, a criminal who blatantly commits acts against the NOL and everything it stands for!**" Tsubaki yelled, as Sora had no choice but to give her a gut punch in order to make sure that she didn't suddenly lunge at him with strength he had not seen before. "**And your truth is built on a foundation of lies… yet you already know that. You are fighting to rebuild that foundation….yet you are also sided with the Zero Squadron… THE ZERO SQUADRON!**" Sora yelled, the frustration he had reaching a fever pitch as he wanted to say more.

Unfortunately, he was unable to say anymore as he felt a dangerous presence approach his way as he immediately backed off from Tsubaki, the Rev Arm clenched tightly on his hand as his eyes landed onto a person he had never thought he would see in Kagutsuchi. Her black twin tailed hair was tied with an ornament that resembled horns as her eyes felt like they were piercing his soul with their light blue gaze. This is a woman that even someone who tends to not pay attention to what was happening all around the world like Sora...knew very well.

"**Oh my… it seems that you have found yourself in quite the predicament there Miss Yayoi. Would you require some assistance?**" The black haired woman said as Sora stepped several steps back not out of fear but out of a growing sense of caution. "**And what brings you all the way here to Kagutsuchi… Meifang LapisLazuli?**" Sora questioned as the woman now known as Meifang LapisLazuli looked at him with some interest in her eyes.

"**So you know who I am huh?**" She said, musing to herself as Sora scoffed a bit. "**Of course I would… your name is something to be feared in the criminal circles… Leader of the Zero Squadron and Mad woman...**" Sora said as Meifang couldn't help but smile at that. "**So you know about me do you… that is troublesome. I must deal with you now and find out more about what you are doing in this town right now assaulting my dear lieutenant.**" Meifang said, her feet starting to walk as Sora's instincts kicked in at that moment.

'_**Don't even dare fight Meifang right now Sora. You need to get the fuck out of here right now… away from this crazy bitch right now before she does anything.**_' Sora thought as flight was his option...and a really strong option at that point as he looked to his back to see that there was a sewage system that flowed underneath the platform they were standing. If he wanted to get away now, he would have had to do so at that very point.

"**As much as I would like to have a chat about that… I am afraid I do not have time to spare right now.**" Sora said as he pointed the rev arm towards Meifang and blasted right at her, causing the force of the seithr blast to blast him off the platform completely and go into a free fall as Meifang simply allowed him to do so, calmly walking as she did so to look at the bottom and see nothing. No signs of a person falling down to their death as Tsubaki removed the rebar that had pinned her to the wall as she approached her commanding officer.

"**Is he dead Ma'am?**" Tsubaki asked as Meifang simply turned around and looked at Tsubaki in the eyes before grabbing her and lifting her to the balcony itself. This terrified the girl as Meifang looked at her in the eyes. "**Do you see a body at the end of the ground?**" Meifang calmly asked as she made Tsubaki look at the ground underneath her, making the girl shake her head as Meifang simply smiled and placed her back on the balcony.

"**Then that means he's most likely still alive. The fact that he willingly blasted himself off this balcony tells me he's already got a way to get away from us in the first place.**" Meifang said while Tsubaki simply panted on the ground, her face briefly going pale as she slowly stood up before Meifang looked at her in the eyes. "**Why did you hold back your true potential Miss Yayoi?**" Meifang questioned as she got up closer to the girl.

Tsubaki froze at that moment, unsure of what she should say at that moment. "**I...It's because...I still don't know how...**" But before she could finish her sentence, Meifang threw a punch right at her, stopping inches at her face as Tsubaki felt the wind blow across her hair as Meifang pulled back her fist. "**You held back simply because you lack the backbone to commit your task? Is that right Miss Yayoi?**" Meifang Questioned as her eyes continued to stare right at Tsubaki as she stood still.

"**Face it Miss Yayoi… you're weak and lack a backbone. that's why I was sent with you to Kagutsuchi. To make sure you do your job of killing Jin Kisaragi and Noel Vermillion.**" Meifang said as Tsubaki simply stood there and allowed her to speak down on her as she tightly clenched her pants. "**Frustrated now? Good. That means you know that already. So tell me… Why did you hold back against that man huh?**"

Tsubaki wanted to say that she tried her best, that she was giving her all in the fight against Sora. However she knew that whatever she said next would simply be interpreted as excuses and simply remained quiet, something that Meifang knew from just looking at her as she simply patted Tsubaki's back. "**Good… You know well enough that you didn't give it your all. You didn't put everything into it. You didn't push the Izayoi to it's limits.**" Meifang said as she grabbed Tsubaki's hands and placed them onto the hilt of the Izayoi.

"**Remember this very well Miss Yayoi, Power is needed to fight against Power. Those who have power are absolute. And without power, you are simply useless.**" Meifang said as Tsubaki gulped, knowing the meaning behind those words as Meifang released her grip on Tsubaki's hands, leaving them rested on the hilt of the Izayoi as she began to walk. "**Now come on Miss Yayoi, we need to report what happened to Captain Hazama and let him know that the person he's been looking for was last seen here.**" Meifang said as Tsubaki slowly began to walk before suddenly being stopped by Meifang again.

"**And if you hesitate to do your job properly against Jin and Noel… I will do it for you… Do you understand.**" Meifang said before continuing to walk ahead of Tsubaki as she knew very well that if she got her hands on Jin and Noel… they were most likely to die very painful and horrible deaths. '**Jin… Noel… I am sorry… but for the sake of justice… I must do this.**' Tsubaki thought as she clenched the Izayoi tightly before following her officer…

* * *

**...Keeping the words that Meifang said close to her heart…**

* * *

As Tsubaki followed Meifang, Sora panted heavily, unable to believe his luck slipping into the sewage system as he knew he was safe for the time being from the NOL chasing him. '_**Sometimes I am thankful for my drive.**_' Sora thought, having used his drive to pull himself into the drain in the first place, slipping through the graters as now that he had this time to think for himself, he couldn't help but sit down and rub his forehead.

'_**Just what is going on… it's like Tsubaki… hell even Jin somehow forgot about me… and it's not the normal kind of forget at all.**_' Sora thought as he was about to place his head onto the sewage wall before remembering that he was in the sewers and sometimes sewage could seep through the walls. So he simply placed his head on the rev arm instead to rub his forehead and comprehend the gravity of the situation he was in at that moment.

'_**So if Jin and Tsubaki forgot about me? What about Makoto then? Does that mean she forgot about me too?**_' Sora thought in fear as he clenched his necklace tightly at the thought of finally finding Makoto only to be met with a who are you question. That simple thought was enough to not only cause him to shiver but also shake his head several times at such thoughts. '_**No… that can't be true. I refuse to believe that Makoto of all people would have forgotten about me.**_' Sora thought as he couldn't help but start piecing together things that were starting to make sense now that this has happened to him.

'_**Could whatever affected Jin and Tsubaki be what affected Derrick, Pikaka and Chikacho? If so how on earth do they still remember me… God I should stop trying to think of answers to questions that are impossible to answer right now!**_' Sora thought in pure frustration, ruffling his hair as he began to walk out of the sewers looking for a manhole he could use. '_**First of all, get into the open road and find a place where I can contact Caroline about all of this.**_' Sora thought as he began to climb the manhole, his second thought becoming very clear.

* * *

'_**The second thing I will have to do is find Makoto… **__**right now**__**.**_'

* * *

As all of this happened, three beings watched from the white void surrounded them, their bodies nowhere to be seen but the shadows that they cast over a series of chairs were the only indication that there were people present in the room. This was a special place and the three beings present in the room are known as the Takagamahara System, a man made creation long ago designed by man. "**So… we have finally found ****the Event Error it seems.**" A male spoke, his gaze now focused on Sora Minakaze as the two other beings simply nodded their heads.

"**It seems we have, I must admit, the moment we started trying to find the error, the Master Unit started to behave strangely and started ****erasing ****any trace of the error's existence. ****Despite it's best efforts, we have finally managed to locate what she has been trying to hide this whole time.**" A female being said as the third person cleared their throat. "**Should we begin the process of erasing the Error so we can reset the timeline once more to it's proper flow**?" The third being spoke.

"**Let us not proceed with haste right now. We must first figure out why the Master Unit went through so much trouble to keep this Error's existence in place. Once we do so, we can start altering the events of the world to ensure that the Error is eliminated.**" The first man spoke as the woman noted it down. "**Shall we start by altering the timeline so that the Error meets with the Azure Grimoire?**" The woman suggested.

"**That would be a good start, start making sure that is possible. Also let us call back Miss Alucard and Terumi back here. We must inform them that they are to double down on their efforts to observe the Error. We must make sure we do not lose track of him the moment we see him again.**" The second man said as the shadows soon disappeared, continuing to have a discussion among themselves as they began to spin their own machinations as Sora's life was about to be thrown in for a loop…

* * *

… **A loop designed to ensure his death…**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING AT THIS FINE DAY!? I can understand if you guys are not doing well and need a story to cheer you all up so I hope this story does that for you. In any other case, I hope this chapter has given you some closure to the questions you all may have been looking for or maybe have risen your interest in other questions that need answering. All I can say is, all will be told in time and time is something a story needs to be good I believe… that and making sure everything makes sense in the process and doesn't cause you frustration.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TO OUR HERO!? WILL HE SURVIVE WHATEVER TAKAMAGAHARA HAVE IN STORE FOR HIM?! AND HOW DOES HE FEEL ABOUT HIS CURRENT SITUATION AT THE VERY MOMENT?! Well… All I can say at this very moment is simple, whatever happens to Sora at this point, things are not going to get easier for him and for the people he has chosen to become friends with. So read on to find out more.**


	17. Canon 16: Sewer Revelations and Troubles

( A New canon has begun to turn... Now let us see where our Journey now takes us..)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 16

Sewers... one of the most disgusting places that a person could end up. It's also a place that Sora is quite familiar with, having gone to several sewers with his job. Despite this however, he didn't have to like the smell of the sewers as a dead rat floated up the sewage flow, making him bite his lip a bit before he closed his nose. '_**God someone needs to come down here and freaking clean this place up... or at least put up an air freshener.**_' Sora thought as he continued to walk forward.

'_**But then again... you might need a shit ton of air fresheners just to make a sewer smell... less like an actual sewer.**_' Sora thought again as he struggled to find a manhole he could climb out off. For a couple of sewers, Sora had to admit that it was taking much longer to find an exit than it normally would. '_**There's got to be an exit coming up soon... just why is it taking so long to find one.**_' Sora thought as suddenly he heard something squishy on his foot.

Sora immediately looked at his feet to see he had accidentally stepped on a weird creature. It looked like a bug but it had a massive mouth with tiny feet. As Sora picked it up, he noted that the creature had no eyes on it as he tilted his head. "_**Never seen one of these before... must be a part of the sewers here.**_" Sora thought as he tossed it into the sewer water, unfazed by the fact he had touched a bug and probably didn't know where it had been.

"_**God damn Kagutsuchi sewers and their far as fuck manholes. I just want to get out of here alrea...**_" Before Sora could complain even further, Sora immediately covered his mouth, gagging a little in the process. The smell of the sewer was starting to get to him and he needed to find a room to at least breathe before he continued his search for a manhole. Looking to his left, he saw a break room he could break into as he used the Rev Blade as a makeshift crowbar to get in.

A huge cloud of dust struck him as the door swung open. The room was clearly not in use for the longest time as he switched on the light to check the room. '_**Nobody in the room. Looks clear to take a break in for a while.**_' Sora thought as he closed the door behind him and took a seat in the room. Now that he has found a place to collect his thoughts, he couldn't help but start to think about the events that had just happened a few minutes ago.

From the way Tsubaki attacked him without hesitation to the way that both her and Jin simply forgot about him, There were a lot of things lingering in Sora's mind at that moment. Just what was going on and why was it all happening to him at that moment. '_**If there was only someone I could talk to at this very moment for things like this that would be very helpful… oh who am I kidding, who on Earth will know something like that?**_' Sora thought as he took a seat on one of the dusty chairs as his head stared towards the moldy ceiling from the poorly maintained room.

"**I might have a few things that I need to say to you.**" A voice said as that caused Sora to immediately lose his seating as he struggled to not fall over in a comedic bit only to fail in the process, dropping right onto his left stump of an arm which simply sucked. The voice was someone he was familiar with… in fact a few years ago he was talking with this person before they completely vanished out of nowhere and had never spoken to him since.

"**Can you not do something like that ever again Amy?! Jesus you gave me a heart attack doing…. Wait a minute.**" Sora said as he realized something was off…. Something was very off. It was not the fact that he was being talked to by an imaginary girl from his dreams. It was the fact that the imaginary girl from his dreams was talking to him in real life as they spoke at that very moment. "**Well it's good to hear that you are still alive and well Sora. And how you remembered me after all of these years.**" Amy said as Sora himself had a lot of questions that he wanted to ask Amy at that exact moment.

* * *

Sora: **Well, it's great and all to hear from you too ever since you went away… but can you at least do it from my dreams and not in reality as we speak right now!? In fact, How on Earth is a person from my dream even speaking to me right now!?**

Amy: **Well… let us just say it's complicated for now. I would speak to you in your dreams like normal, but circumstances have changed enough that I am forced to do something as drastic as this to get in contact with you.**

Sora: **Drastic indeed… are you trying to give me a heart attack here? You don't just do that to people even if you know them… I think.**

Amy: **I'm sorry, I promise that this is just a one time thing and that I won't do this ever again.**

Sora: **Oh forgot it… maybe it's better this way. Better for me to be able to hear what you say in real life than in my dreams which would feel like I am speaking to my imaginary friend… not that this is also speaking to an imaginary friend but… You get what I mean.**

* * *

Amy simply giggled hearing that when Sora said those words. "**I do get what you mean… and trust me, an imaginary friend is the least of your worries at this very point.**" Amy said as Sora took the chair he was sitting on and sat back on it as he rubbed his stump. "**So Amy.. care to explain why did you decide to come in right now? Is it because of the favor you said I owe you two years ago?**" Sora said as Amy remained quiet hearing that as Sora guessed that was it.

"**You're correct… it's in regards to the favor that I asked of you two years ago...**" Amy said as Sora couldn't help but scratch his head. "**I would like to do that right now, but as you can… or cannot see right now. I am in the middle of my own trouble. My friends have forgotten about me and the only people that do remember me are from Otsu. Now either everyone's developed amnesia while I was away or something else has happened.**" Sora said as he struggled to try and make sense with what was going on.

"**So unless you have answers as to why everyone's doing that… I don't think I can do that favor right now.**" Sora continued as he thought about placing his head on the table to rub his forehead on but decided against it when he realized that he doesn't know what has been on the table in the first place. "**I… Think I can help shed some light on your current situation...**" Amy said as Sora couldn't help but look at the sky with some skepticism.

"**A person from my dreams has the answer to my current problem… talk about losing your mind...**" Sora said as he saw a light glow a bit before suddenly a bright light engulfed the room, blinding him for a bit before allowing him to see a white haired girl wearing a white dress right in front of him. Sora couldn't help but lose his balance on the chair again and fall off as a result, his mind unable to register the crazy event happening right in front of him at that moment.

"**And now said person is in reality! Great! I am seriously losing my mind here!**" Sora shouted, his confusion simply growing as he doesn't even know what was going on at this point. "**I understand you're confused but...**" "**CONFUSED! I THINK I DESERVE A PROPER EXPLANATION WOMAN!**" Sora shouted, interrupting Amy in the process as he slammed his hand onto the table, kicking the dust right into the air.

As Sora panted, Amy looked at him before taking a deep breath. "**I understand… my sudden appearance is… sudden, But the reason why I am here right now in front of you is simple… it is for the favor I asked of you.**" Amy said, ignoring the fact that she just appeared right in front of someone who has only seen her in his dreams. Sora couldn't help but rub his head furiously at that as he decided to let her continue to explain rather than interrupt her.

"**You see… I need you to go to the cauldron here in Kagutsuchi. I know it's abrupt… but only you can do what I need you to do.**" Amy explained as Sora simply gestured for her to continue. At this point, Sora knew that he had to take this deal otherwise he would get nowhere. "**You will know when you need to go to the cauldron when I say so… I know this sounds cryptic but I need to keep things this way for the time being.**" Amy continued as Sora took a deep breath of his own.

"**So… you want me to sneak my way into a cauldron, the thing that supplies a hierarchical city the energy needed to power the whole damn city… and you are not going to explain why… Can you at least tell me it's related to everyone forgetting me?**" Sora said as at this point, he cannot help but feel a sense of dread creep up his collar as Amy continued to speak. "**Yes… it's related… in fact it's the cause of why everyone's forgotten about you.**"

The moment Sora heard those words, Sora wanted to lunge at Amy. However he showed restraint as he knew that Amy most likely was a messenger and the head honcho would know more about this. "**So tell me… who on earth erased everyone's memories of me in the first place? It's obvious that they want to use me for something… but what.**" Sora said, wanting to make sense of the current predicament that was placed in front of him, however Amy simply bit her lips, unable to say the reason why Sora was chosen.

"**Fine, keep it a secret for now. Just so you know, you owe me a favor for doing this for you. Fair?**" Sora said as Amy simply nodded her head, extending her hand for a handshake as he accepted it, taking another deep breath to calm down. "**I can at least tell you… that the reason why everyone's memories of you were erased was because my boss needed just you and people remembering you… would make the process more difficult.**" Amy said as Sora, now calmer, decided to ask her one more question instead of snapping at her once again.

"**Then why does everyone in Otsu remember me then? If your boss wanted to erase everyone's memories of me, then they should be able to do so with a city of criminals. Why everywhere else besides Otsu.**" Sora questioned as he looked at Amy as her eyes flashed blue briefly before she decided to answer. "**It's because you have a strong presence in Otsu. If we had erased everyone's memories in Otsu, the beings that are looking for you would realize something was odd and would immediately ****check Otsu and as a result, find you****.**" Amy said

Beings? What could these beings be? That was the simple question ringing through his mind but at the end, he decided against asking that question as he felt that might be going a bit too far into things he didn't need to know yet. After all, he could sense that Amy was lying about something in her last sentence. A person wouldn't need to lie unless they want to hide something so for the time being he decided to accept her story.

"**So what is this being trying to do to erase me? Kill me?**" Sora said as Amy simply needed to nod her head for Sora to sigh deeply. "**Of course, it's the good old kill this person routine. Why am I not surprised at this point.**" Sora continued as Amy decided to say something at that moment. "**We plan to undo the memory loss once everything is done… but things have gotten more complicated...**" Amy said as Sora simply raised a hand towards her.

"**That's great and all but not important right now. Just tell me how this being is trying to kill me and I can focus on staying alive so I can do your favor… while I try to do things of my own.**" Sora said as he knew very well that too much information at once is a bad thing. As much as he wanted to know why Jin, Tsubaki hell presumably everyone else's memories of him were erased, he had to focus on the task of finding Makoto and making sure she's alright… even if she has forgotten about him in the process.

Amy meanwhile couldn't help but bite her lips seeing this resignation come out from Sora. She wanted to tell him that Makoto does remember him, that if he went to her right now she would be fine. But she would interfering with the natural flow of time if she did so… that by doing that, it would allow the Takagamahara system the perfect opportunity to kill him. She knew she had to bring the two together somehow… but it had to be at the perfect moment.

But the least she could do for Sora at this point was to try and help guide him towards a path where he could meet up with Makoto. "**The system will try to kill you by manipulating events so that you are forced to ****meet hostile forces****. It has the ability to do so.**" Amy explained as Sora suddenly had an emphiphany. "**Can this being reset certain events so that they can manipulate the event to their heart's desire?**" Sora said, remembering how he saw Jin get stabbed in the chest and died but when he ran down to confront Tsubaki, Jin was well, in fact he had not been stabbed by Tsubaki at all and she was nowhere in the area.

"**That is correct. I can only say for now, exercise extreme caution from this point on. For now that it knows of your existence, it will do anything in it's power to try and kill you.**" Amy explained as Sora simply remained calm at this point, knowing that any unnecessary anger would be useless at this point. "**So all you want me to do is stay alive in Kagutsuchi until you need me at the cauldron here… am I correct?**" Sora said as Amy simply nodded her head.

"**Then that changes nothing I guess. I was planning on staying in Kagutsuchi for a few days to relax… but replace relaxation with a murderous almighty being that wants to kill me… god this is so complicated.**" Sora complained, realizing how ridiculous he sounded saying those words as Amy simply looked at the frustrated man, wondering what she can do to help. "**But the best thing to do at these moments is to simply accept the cards fate give you and fight like hell huh… I guess I am used to this routine at this point.**" Sora said, smirking at the ridiculousness of the situation placed in front of him.

"**It's good to see that you at least have some optimism Sora.**" Amy said as Sora scratched his head. "**Well.. Optimism is the one thing I've got left… and her too.**" Sora said as his hand reached out for his necklace, clutching it tightly as his mind went towards Makoto. "**I...need to go now, when the time comes, I will speak to you once again.**" Amy said as she closed her eyes, about to leave Sora once again for where Sora presumed she lived as he cleared his throat to get her attention.

"**Say…**** where you live… do you think you would be able to learn the whole Japanese language there? As much as speaking english like this is good and all… I would rather prefer not to sound like a crazy man if I have to speak to you in a more public setting… for privacy reasons.**" Sora said, trying his best to help lighten the mood as Amy couldn't help but smile at this effort. "**I think I could learn a whole language in it's most basic form...**" Amy said, which was enough to make Sora smile a little bit.

"**Alright…**** now get going. We both are going to be quite busy on our own ends so we should get to it.**" Sora said as Amy smiled before closing her eyes and disappearing. As soon as she did though, Sora couldn't help but pull the chair back and rub his forehead with his hand. He struggled to process the information that had been given to him as his mind wondered about so many things. Just what are the beings trying to kill him, Why did the world erase memories of him away from everyone else? Was it even worth it to go and find Makoto now if she too has forgotten about him?

Sora shook his head at that, realizing that he was thinking negative thoughts. '_**No! You can't think like that Sora! Even if she's forgotten about you… even if the world is going to be out to kill you, Hell even if you don't understand what on earth is actually happening to you right now! You still have to meet her dammit! I just need to know she's alright!**_' Sora thought, refusing to let negative thoughts and the current confusing situation get to him.

As he said that, he felt his hand get hit with something rather strange as it made him look to see what was the cause of it. It was a black ooze that when Sora began to touch felt more like a tar or jelly like substance. This made him look up as his eyes widened at the sight that was in front of him. The whole roof of the room was now covered in Black ooze and right in the middle of the roof was a mysterious white mask as Sora knew he was in immediate danger.

"**Y...SM...KE...Azure..**" The mask spoke which was Sora's clue to get the hell out of the room as without any hesitation, he kicked the door down running back out into the sewers as he began to take off running, knowing that whatever it was, it's best not to fight it in such a small and tight room. '_**Just what on Earth is that thing!**_' Sora simply thought as he turned his head around only to see this creature charging towards him at full speed, swimming around the ground in a black puddle as it used it's mask to keep looking forward.

"**TA...Me...Azure.**" The mask spoke again as Sora couldn't help but be befuddled by what he was looking at until he remembered a tale he heard at the bar once that Pikaka told him. "**Recently in Kagutsuchi, I've heard the Kakans talk about a big black ball of mass that wears a white mask. I don't know if they are true, but they call it an Arakune which sounds like to me a delicious super secret fish they are keeping hidden from me. HEHEHE**" Pikaka told him as Sora couldn't help but sweat at that while continuing to run like crazy.

'_**I definitely think that Arakune does not stand for super delicious fish now Pikaka!**_' Sora thought as his feet did not stop running, his instincts telling him to just keep running towards a more open area to fight this thing in because if he were to try and take it on such a dark and narrow tunnel, he would most likely get eaten by this….black mass. '_**For now, forget getting to a manhole, this thing's fast enough to do...whatever it does! I have to at least try to slow it down!**_' Sora thought as he realized his predicament.

Sure he could just run up a manhole and open it up so that he could escape to the surface. But by judging how quickly this thing was able to keep up with him, it would most likely get it's black mass on him before he could even open the manhole in time. Even with two hands it would be a stretch as it would require deploying the rev blade in it's arm form and then open the manhole. The amount of time that would require would be much longer than he could escape.

'_**My best shot is to figure out how this thing works, try to slow it down somehow and hope that this being that **__**Amy mention that **__**is trying to kill me doesn't undo the work that I have done.**_' Sora thought as his break came when the tunnel opened up into a much bigger room as the metal floor looked flimsy from disrepair and poor maintenance and parts of the railings once used to help keep people from falling were now falling themselves. Whatever the case, the room had enough space that Sora felt confident he could at least figure out what he needed to do against Arakune here.

"_**Right…**__** Time to do this!**_" Sora said, grabbing the rev blade and revving it to bring the Seithr in the area to it. "**ENHANCED GEAR!"** As soon as he did so however, he saw the black puddle that was following Arakune immediately get pulled towards his direction, forming quickly into a black spike of sorts that forced Sora to immediately act otherwise he would get impaled as he activated the gear. "**ENHANCED FINISH!**" The Rev Blade shouted as Sora did an aggressive spin that placed space between him and Arakune, destroying the black spike in the process.

'_**You've got to be kidding me.**_' Sora thought as he revved the Rev Blade again to confirm what he was seeing as he saw another patch of Black mass come out from Arakune and form itself this time into a long tentacle as Sora used another Enhanced Finish to blast away the tentacle as he flew into the air. '_**That thing's made of Seithr!? So that goop it's dragging… it's liquid Seithr!?**_' Sora thought as he couldn't help but groan at his misfortune.

The Rev Blade was a system created so that Sora could absorb the Seithr in the area right into his own body, allowing him to empower himself with Seithr itself without the need of Ars Magus or having to walk into heavy Seithr dense areas to get stronger. However if this thing was a living mass of Seithr, then it could get into the Rev Blade and simply rip it apart from the inside out as it relied on absorbing the Seithr into itself and refining it into a much purer form for Sora to use.

'_**If that thing's Seithr then using the Rev Blade's out of the question. The Rev Arm's too risky as well if I want to use it.**_' Sora thought as he quickly raised the Rev Blade to block one of Arakune's attacks which was simply throwing it's mass of liquid Seithr right at Sora's direction, causing him to fly back to the ground as Sora quickly recovered before he caused significant damage to the metal floor underneath him.

The Rev Arm's problem was simple. While it gives Sora the ability to fight with both hands, if he tried to use the rev function in that form, he ran the risk of pulling the liquid Seithr right towards him, leaving him very little time to dodge as a result. Hell heaven forbid if it managed to grab him when he did that. '_**Fuck, this thing is literally my worst match up right now.**_' Sora thought as he blocked a bony claw attack from Arakune as he noticed something glowing red come out of Arakune's body.

As Sora raised his guard, his face suddenly got struck by this glowing red thing as his eyes barely saw that it was in fact an insect, the same type of insect that he threw back into the sewer water as he realized where it most likely came from. '_**So besides being a mass of living Seithr, it's also a living biome for insects that go berserk… Just my luck.**_' Sora thought as the more he fought against this thing, the more he realized just how badly this fight would go if he allowed this thing to have it's way.

And have it's way was Arakune's goal as he sprouted several black tentacles and began to attack erratically, attacking in ways a normal human being would have never seen before. As it swung with one tentacle, a claw was already swinging towards Sora's legs, threatening to sever them right off the white haired man. Thanks to his Drive thought, Sora was able to dodge both attacks, jumping into the air to dodge the claw swipe and using the momentum gained by blocking the first tentacle attack to push him away from Arakune's offense as Sora panted heavily.

'_**I can't prolong this fight for too long. There's definitely a limit to using this drive before it kills me.**_' Sora thought as while he got used to the pain it caused to the point his nervous system no longer felt pain, he could never really fix the exhaustion his drive caused as repeated use of it has increased his duration but not by much. '_**There's got to be a way… an opening I can exploit to put this thing down.**_' Sora thought as his mind was working in overdrive, thinking of solutions to his current problem while his body reacted to the attacks being thrown his way.

As Sora took one step on a metal floor panel, he could hear it rattle as he noticed his way out, a manhole that he could climb out of. His mind quickly came up with a plan as he raised his blade to block another wild attack that came from Arakune as he stabbed the Rev Blade right onto the metal panel. As he did so, he tossed his bladeless knife right towards the Manhole, closing his eyes and waiting for the perfect moment.

Arakune saw his chance, his prey had just disarmed themselves and was leaving themselves open for attack. All it had to do was simply surround his prey with his tentacles and ensure they could not escape so that he could devour them to his heart's desire. His tentacles lunged forward at rapid speed, their black mass reaching dangerously close to Sora as before they could even touch his skin barely, Sora had already vanished, using the second aspect of his Drive to pull himself towards the bladeless knife, catching it mid air and grabbing the ladder leading towards the manhole.

Arakune, realizing his prey had just escaped, gave chase, using his black mass of Seithr Tentacles to quickly give chase. But before they could reach him, Sora briefly released his grip on the ladder and extended his hand out, closing his eyes as the Rev Blade that had been stabbed onto the metal panel suddenly appeared on his hand, Metal panel in tow as the black tentacles struck the metal panel several times. He then quickly turned the Rev Blade into it's arm form to grab the ladder before he lost his grip on it, using the increased strength of the Rev Arm to push the manhole cover out with ease

Sora knew he had very little time to waste so as soon as the manhole came flying out, he used his Drive one last time to move himself right onto the manhole cover and kick it back into the hole sealing the entrance once again as Sora's weight held down Arakune's attempts at trying to escape. Continuing from there, Sora tipped over a large discarded wardrobe over the manhole, covering it up completely as Sora placed distance between himself and the manhole, unsure what was going to happen next.

'_**...**__**I've got to get away now.**_' Sora thought as when he saw that the wardrobe was holding… whatever Arakune was back, he knew he had to put some distance between him and that thing immediately as he took off at full speed, not looking back as he just ran, not knowing where he was going. Somehow Sora had managed to survive that one encounter but if this being really wanted him dead, they were not going to stop at that one attempt.

'_**Do I have presume that everyone coming after me is going to be hostile? If that is the case, I better not be the first person to strike otherwise they might really attack me if they just happen to be there.**_' Sora thought as he realized that not ever person he would meet from this point on would be hostile and that it was going to be up to him to exercise proper caution on his own end. 'For now, I got to get somewhere I know at least… I can't afford to get lost in this town now.' Sora thought as he continued to run, avoiding any manholes for the potential of Arakune bursting forth from them if he still was hunting him at this point.

'_**If I ever meet that thing again I better just run away from it. I can most likely defeat it with time but it would waste too much time and resources. Time and resources I need to spend finding Makoto and surviving whatever this divine being has for me.**_' Sora thought as soon the scenery started to change for Sora, forcing Sora to take a look of the surroundings around him. As soon as he did, his face couldn't help but pale a bit as he realized where he was.

'_**Fuck…**__** I was just here yesterday and here I am back.**_' Sora thought as he looked at the entrance in front of him both with shock and horror as he was now standing in front of Orient Town, the same district that he was taken to have dinner with Makoto's former superior named Hazama as Sora couldn't help but scratch his head at that. '_**Just keep my head down and hope nothing happens...I guess.**_' Sora thought as he began to walk towards Orient Town, his senses on high alert as simply put…

* * *

**His day was only going to get more chaotic from here.**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING!? And I have a bit of a special announcement to make to you all. Due to reasons I am not going to let the internet know, I will have to release this chapter and the next chapter a bit earlier than I normally do. Don't worry, you will still have you two chapters a month, just expect them to come much earlier than you are used to so if you are the type that can't really wait, then you all are in luck.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TO SORA!? WILL HE HAVE TO FACE WEIRD CREATURES LIKE ARAKUNE ONCE AGAIN!? WHAT ELSE DOES THIS WORLD HAVE IN STORE FOR HIM!? AND FOR HOW LONG WILL HE NEED TO SURVIVE IN ORDER FOR THE TAKAGAMAHARA SYSTEM TO LOSE INTEREST IN THE MAN!? ALL THIS AND MORE IN THE NEXT BLACK!**


	18. Canon 17: Oriental Madness

( A New Canon has begun! Now let us see what fate has in store for Sora Minakaze Next.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 17

Orient Town... Sora Minakaze had been here once. In fact it was yesterday when he was last here, eating food with an NOL official that was rather sub par at best. Now that was less the fault of Orient Town and more on the NOL official who thought that it was a good idea to only order boiled eggs without any kind of condiment, eating them whole like some sort of weirdo. Regardless, Sora did not want to be seen here...for a lot of reasons.

'_**Let's just make this a quick passing by trip and nobody has to get hurt in the process... easy right?**_' Sora thought but he knew it was not going to be easy. There is a god like being after for his blood, able to make anything go after him and fight him, and they can manipulate time to do so. Sora at this point would not be surprised to find out that he has been secretly consuming drugs in all of this but the 1000th pinch to his skin via using the rev arm tells him otherwise.

'_**Of course not... knowing angry god like beings... when something doesn't go their way, send the next obstacle.**_' Sora thought as he couldn't help but think back to the Seithr like creature he had fought a while ago known as Arakune. How does something like that even exist... a being able to just existence as pure Seithr alone. Then again, what Arakune is somewhat similar in concept to what the Black Beast was... simply put, a being of Seithr.

'_**No point spending time thinking about stuff that doesn't make sense, all I can do is survive and get to Makoto...**_' Sora thought, pushing Arakune to the back of his mind as he began to look left and right around his surroundings. This was a new place to him so he didn't know where he needed to go to exit Orient Town. But at the very least, this was a brief respite to the current chaos that he had to endure as he decided to have the Rev Blade in it's Rev Arm form, figuring that would draw less attention than a giant sword strapped to his back.

'_**Anything that gets less eyes on me is alright... that being said, If I could just dye my hair black and not have a blind eye, then I would be perfectly blending in.**_' Sora finished as he looked up to see that somehow, his feet had taken him to the restaurant that he had worked hard to run away from, making him scratch his head in the process. '_**Oh how did I get here?.. Never mind, just walk away and pretend that place doesn't exist.**_' Sora thought but before he could even take another step forward, he immediately sensed a killing intent directed his way.

"**SO THERE YOU ARE RAWGNA!**" A voice shouted as Sora looked to see something he had never thought he would see. Another Kakan as this one was dark skinned and was wearing a white kakan hoodie with red and yellow trim as her face bared the look of an angry beast as her tail was spiked in the air. "**Uhhh... Can I help you Kakan?**" Sora questioned as the Kakan in question pointed her paw right at his direction.

"**YES NYA! YOU CAN HELP ME BY BEING DEFEATED BY TAO NYA!**" The Kakan known as Tao shouted as Sora couldn't help but rub his forehead at that. "**Uhhh...I don't know about that... but are you sure you should be saying stuff like that before we fight? And also why are you challenging me out of nowhere?**" Sora questioned as Tao couldn't help but puff her chest at that. "**Well you see Rawgna! You are worth a lot of money! Money Tao can use to help her village Nya!**"

"**Uhhh...that's great and all... but why are you calling me Rawgna?**" Sora questioned as Tao smirked even more and reached her paw into her breast pocket, pulling out a piece of paper. "**IT'S BECAUSE YOU ARE RAWGNA THE BLOODEDGE! JUST LOOKING AT THIS PICTURE TELLS ME THAT!**" Tao shouted as she revealed the wanted poster of not Rawgna the Bloodedge but Ragna the bloodedge... and the terrible picture that came with it as Sora couldn't help but rub his forehead at that.

* * *

Sora: **Okay look...I know your kind can be...dumb at times... But don't you think that the guy in the picture...is not me?**

Tao: **HAHA! TRYING TO DEFLECT THE BLAME AWAY HUH RAWGNA! YOU TRULY ARE A BAD GUY!**

Sora: **N-No... it's just I don't look like anything like the guy in the picture. I don't have red and green eyes. I have white hair but not that spiky... and I certainly don't look like I got fucking hit by a truck of all things!**

Tao: **DON'T TRY TO THINK THAT TAO IS DUMB NYA! I LOOKED AT THIS PICTURE AND I CAN TELL YOU'RE RAWGNA! YOU EVEN SOUND LIKE A BAD GUY YOURSELF TRYING TO DEFEND YOURSELF!**

Sora:_**... You fucking idiot cat**_. **I already told you that I am not this Rawgna! AND IT'S NOT EVEN PRONOUNCED RAWGNA ON THE POSTER BUT RAGNA! IF YOU ARE GOING TO BE A BOUNTY HUNTER! TRY TO AT LEAST LEARN BASIC ENGLISH!**

* * *

"**NYAHAHAH! TAO DOESN'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE SPEAKING AT ALL SO YOU MUST BE A BAD GUY! NYA!**" Tao shouted as a crowd as beginning to form as a result as Sora simply sighed and realized that while Tao wanted to capture him... he was just not in the mood to fight against her. One was simply because from just looking at her, he could tell he could beat her with his eyes closed and second was that he didn't feel like bullying someone who clearly has not either studied a lot in her life... or was fed information that was dubious at best.

'_**At least if I can subdue this dumb cat without harming her... I can at least sleep at bit easier knowing that I didn't harm someone who might be autistic in the head... but then again me presuming her to be autistic is just as bad...**_' Sora thought as he scratched his head before looking at Tao in the eyes. "**Are you sure you want to do this? Just to let you know, I am pretty strong.**" Sora said as Tao couldn't help but grin widely at that. "**OF COURSE NYA! YOU ARE MINE NOW NYA!**" Tao shouted as she dived right for Sora, intent on beating him.

As soon as Sora saw the Kakan dive towards him, he immediately dodged, causing her to crash into a pile of trash as a crowd began to form as a result. As the trash flew to the side, Sora saw his opportunity to end this fight as peacefully as he could when a trash can emptied it's contents when Tao crashed right into it, causing the lid holding the trash back to spill out as well. '_**At least I can see a way of ending this without bloodshed... If I can just get her to go into that bin...**_' Sora thought as Tao immediately turned around.

"**STOP RUNNING AWAY FROM ME RAWGNA AND FACE ME!**" Tao shouted as her paws sprouted out big metal long claws that would seriously hurt someone if they come into contact with anyone. "_**Just where on Earth are you even keeping something like that on your paws?**_" Sora questioned as Tao tilted her head, having never heard Japanese in her life. "_**What are you saying now?! Don't tell me! RAWGNA IS ACTUALLY AN ALIEN NYA!**_" Tao shouted as her claws became sharper at that as Sora couldn't help but face palm at that.

"**It's called Japanese you moron**... _**Oh who am I kidding. With you real idiot types, trying to reason with you would be just a waste of time at the end.**_" Sora said in English at first before finishing the sentence in Japanese, Realizing that it would be useless to try and reason with Tao at this point. It would be better to play the role of Rawgna the bad guy, not only to bait her even more, it also makes it easier for Sora to not get attached to what is essentially a cat given sentience.

"**NOW TAO KNOWS THAT SHE MUST TAKE YOU DOWN RAWGNA THE ALIEN!**" Tao shouted as she dived towards him once again, Sora dodging to the side once again as Tao quickly pulled something out of her paws and tossed it right at Sora, Sora's head bobbing to the left as he saw that Tao had tossed right at him a pillow. Tao then tossed another item right at Sora which was a bowling ball as Sora couldn't help but wonder where she was pulling this stuff out of.

But he had no time to think about such things, all he knew was that he had to subdue the cat as he picked up the bowling ball using the Rev Arm and tossed it right back at Tao at full speed, comedically causing it to bonk Tao on the head and forming a bump on the top of her head which slightly bulged out of her hoodie. "**OWW! YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT RAWGNYA NYA!**" Tao shouted as the crowd continued to grow much to Sora's disliking as he continued to dodge the Kakan's attempts at trying to hit him as she arched her back and sprouted her claws forward in an attempt to hit him.

"_**HEY YOU ARE THE ONE WHO DECIDED TO PICK THIS FIGHT WITH ME! I AM JUST OBLIGING HERE YOU CAT!**_" Sora shouted as Tao simply interpreted the words Sora was saying as some sort of magic chant he was speaking at her as Tao had never heard another language in her life. "**STOP SPEAKING LIKE A WEIRDO AND FIGHT TAO ALREADY NYA!**" Tao shouted as Sora couldn't help but shake his head at that, wondering what he had done to deserve this in his life right now.

'_**Maybe I should just stop trying to entice the stupid cat and get her in the bin already.**_' Sora thought as he dodged another attempt by Tao to pounce on him, Sora not even bothering to use the Rev Arm or the Rev Blade as in his mind, that would be a waste of not only resources, his time but everything else as everything counts in the long run. Soon his opportunity to subdue the cat came when he heard a loud grumble come from Tao.

"**NYAA! TAO DIDN'T GET TO EAT MUCH BEFORE SHE SPOTTED RAWGNA! TAO NEEDS TO END YOU QUICK SO TAO CAN EAT AGAIN!**" Tao shouted, mouth drooling as this was Sora's chance to subdue the big cat as her mind had become so distracted with wanting to eat that she began to attack him with even more ferocity at the expense of less accuracy and no longer watching where she was pouncing, pouncing on even civilians as Sora ran towards the rubbish bin, enticing Tao in the process.

"**HAHA! YOUR BACK IS EXPOSED RAWGNA! NOW IT'S TIME FOR TAO TO USE HER SPECIAL TECHNIQUE!**" Tao shouted as the area suddenly turned black as she leapt into the air, making Sora simply sweat at what she was doing. "_**Is she seriously going to use an astral heat right now of all times? When I am not distracted and can clearly see what she is doing?**_" Sora simply thought as seeing Tao ready herself for a ferocious pounce simply told Sora everything he needed to know.

"**NOW PREPARE FOR THE KAKAN SPECIAL FURIOUS POUNCING TECHNIQUE!**" Tao shouted as she blasted herself right towards Sora, claws sprouting out and ready to hit Sora. But like Sora had said before, she was doing it right in the open, where he could see what she was doing and knew what her attack was and thus he had a simple counter towards what she was trying to do. Lift the rubbish bin right at her direction, causing her to crash right into it and sealing it shut in the process as Tao began to struggle.

"**NYA! LET TAO GO RAWGNA! YOU COWARD! LET TAO OUT OF THIS DARK PLACE!**" Tao shouted as Sora did not waste time to seal the bin shut with a combination of large trash cans and duct tape he borrowed from a nearby convenience store but the moment he saw Tao stab the bin with one of the massive claws, he knew he had to get her out of the way sooner rather than later.

"_**You can thank me for this later you cat, for now... I NEED YOU OUT OF HERE!**_" Sora shouted as he slammed the bin right onto a cart that contained a bunch of fruit and released the brake. Pushing the cart down a hill as Tao was soon launched into the air. "**CURSE YOU RAWGNA THE BLOODEDGE NYA!**" Tao shouted as she was soon simply a sparkle in the sky as Sora collapsed to the ground, simply tired from trying to contain the crazy cat in the first place.

"**My Cart...**" The owner of the cart simply said as he dropped to his knees, having witnessed his cart fly towards the heavens into...wherever it may be now as Sora simply sighed and pulled out a cheque. "**How much was it worth? I can pay it back for you.**" Sora said but before the owner of the cart could tell Sora how much it was worth, Sora felt the back of his collar get picked up before he got turned around where Sora immediately recognized the man.

How could Sora recognize the man? It was simple, it was the same man in the picture Tao had shown him, Ragna the bloodedge. "**What are you thinking, just booting my friend out like that huh.**" Ragna said, his red and green eyes staring right into him as Sora couldn't help but scratch his head at that. "**Well she attacked me...and I defended myself. I don't see anything wrong with what I did.**" Sora simply replied as Ragna simply sighed at that response.

"**I get it. Tao may be a bit of an idiot. But don't think I would let you treat her like that!**" Ragna shouted as Sora couldn't help but continue to scratch his head. "**Then what do you want me to do? Fight her and get her injured in the process? I was trying to be nice to the damn cat even though she started the fight first. And besides she's going to be fine... I mean she has some food along with that cart so at least she's not going to starve to death if she survives so it's all good.**" Sora calmly explained as he hoped that by calmly explaining his decision making he could get away from what was essentially another dumb fight waiting to happen.

"**Fine... You may be right about that. But that still doesn't change the fact that you treated her like that.**" Ragna said as Sora couldn't help but facepalm at that. '_**Does this guy really expect me to really treat her nicer? God for someone with the SSS Class rating given by the NOL he's ridiculously nice **__**for some reason**__**.**_' Sora thought as he didn't know what he was going to say to Ragna the Bloodedge that would not entice another fight at this point.

'_**Maybe this guy has fought one too many bounty hunters at this point that he's incredibly twitchy against potential threats... or maybe he really is famous for picking a fight.**_' Sora thought as Ragna could see Sora's mind in works, his eyes going left and right thinking about various things as he couldn't help but feel a bit pissed off that he was now getting ignored by Sora right now. "**Hey! I am talking to you dammit.**" Ragna said as Sora simply raised his hand to Ragna's face, taking a calm deep breath in the process.

"**Look...if you want to fight, I can understand. But at least if you want a fight, let me get prepared at first at least.**" Sora said as Ragna couldn't help but feel caught off guard by that. Was his current stance coming off as too strong? It didn't seem like Sora was actually picking a fight with him in the first place. "**No you don't have to do that... I was just trying to bring a point that's all.**" Ragna said, his tone becoming lighter as Sora couldn't help but take a deep breath.

"**Do you want to just get a bite? There's no point in us fighting it out if we can just settle this issue by talking it out.**" Sora said, hoping that this was the key he needed to get himself out of another fight and into a proper table for diplomacy. "**Sure...I guess... But you better be able to pay because I am not going to run out of another restaurant again.**" Ragna said as Sora couldn't help but sweat at that. '_**Are you really a criminal or just some guy with bad luck?**_' Sora thought as he was just glad that this whole thing was going to be resolved peacefully.

"**Oh my my, I never thought I would see the day that two dogs would be with each other.**" A voice said as that made Sora simply groan in the process, cursing his bad luck as he looked past Ragna's shoulder to see the green haired man himself, grin on his face and spinning his fedora hat on a finger. "**Hazama**" "**Terumi...**" Both Sora and Ragna said at the same time, surprising each other in the process as Sora looked at Ragna in confusion.

"**Terumi? That green haired guy's called ****Hazama not Terumi****.**" Sora said as Ragna raised his eyebrow at that. "**Yeah... that's what he calls himself. But in truth, that guy's real name is Yuuki Terumi. And he's someone you need to back the fuck away from.**" Ragna said as Hazama couldn't help but clap at that. "**I am so touched by the words you chose for me dear Ragna. But unfortunately or fortunately for you today, I am not here to ruin your day... but his.**" Hazama said, pointing his finger right at Sora as Ragna couldn't help but raise a few questions at that point.

* * *

Ragna: **Woah Woah Woah. What did he ever do to you huh?!**

Hazama: **Well. Simply put, he left me stranded in the middle of a restaurant with a bill that I had to pay with my own money. You owe me at least one hundred thousand blaybloo you!**

Sora:**...What? You are the one who ordered the shitty food. Why should I even pay for that stuff?**

Ragna: **You ran out of a restaurant just because you don't want to pay the bill?**

Sora: **What? It tasted average and boring and also he eats whole boiled eggs...whole...without chewing! What monster does that!**

* * *

'**I highly doubt that is the problem right now kid.**' Ragna thought as Hazama couldn't help but rub his forehead at what he was bearing witness. "**I always knew you Otsunians were an untrustworthy bunch but I had never thought I would see or bear witness to the day that I would hear such nonsense come out of a person's mouth. I LIKE EATING MY EGGS WHOLE! IS THERE A PROBLEM WITH THAT!?**" Hazama said, his voice becoming stern as Sora rubbed his forehead in return.

"**You can't enjoy an egg swallowing it whole! At least if you are going to eat an egg whole put some soy sauce or hell salt on it! NOT SWALLOW THE DAMN THING WITHOUT ANYTHING!**" Sora screamed as Ragna could not believe the dialogue he was hearing at that moment. Here he was, a mortal nemesis that he hated to his very core on one side. And a complete stranger who had just shoved his kakan friend into a trash can and sent her flying into parts unknown on the other. Just what kind of world was he living at that moment.

"**Oh you know what... I was going to show you some mercy and at least beat your ass before I drag you back to base... but screw that. I am just going to make sure the only state they find you in is in a body bag!**" Hazama said, his tone suddenly changing as both Ragna and Sora could sense a sudden change in the green haired man. His tone had changed from a serious but joking kind of manner into a more... unsettling tone, his voice sounding more sadistic as Hazama himself looked like he was struggling to contain something that was beyond him.

"**You know what...I might as well turn around and well...run away right now?**" Sora said as he was about to do what he was going to say but Hazama tossed a strange weapon right at him, a giant head attached to a chain as Sora bobbed his head in time to dodge the chain only to raise his guard to block an attempted knee strike right at his stomach by Hazama to knock him out. Ragna was pushed to the side when this happened as Sora had already went to combat mode as Hazama couldn't help but look around.

"**You know what I realized? Where is that motorcycle looking blade you had on you? I don't remember you having this arm? Are you feigning having a disability to get benefits? You know it's a chargeable offense by Law to fake having a disability in the first place if you have a prosthetic replacement.**" Hazama said with a calm in his voice. Regardless of that, he still had an unsettling feeling about him as Sora knew very well that he should not underestimate this person in the first place.

Instead of answering his question, Sora simply decided that it was best for him to simply and quickly put some distance between him and Hazama at that exact moment. He had just been through hell already, having had to run away from a black Seithr creature and a crazy Kakan. He did not need to add to his day by fighting an NOL official who was clearly more than what meets the eye and overexerting himself doing so in the process.

'_**I need to find a way out of here. I can't afford to fight him right now.**_' Sora thought as he looked at his possible escape routes. There was either too many people blocking that way or it was too open that it would require overexerting himself with use of his drive and that may prove to be an even bigger problem if he used it too much. He needed to think to think about where he could go at that moment as he noticed Hazama slowly reach for his hat.

"**Regardless of who you are... You are just too dangerous to leave alone. You're going to ruin my future plans ****at this rate ****and I can't have that happening right now.**" Hazama said as he pulled down his hat, his hair spiking up as he tossed it to the side, his golden yellow eyes staring right at him. Sora couldn't help but feel even more of his blood freeze in the process as he tensed up and grabbed the rev arm by it's wrist, his eyes focusing on the danger present in front of him.

'_**Run... Just Run...**_' Sora thought as he turned around looking for possible routes to escape but immediately sensed a presence behind him as he turned back to see Hazama, having already gotten to behind him as he spun a balisong knife in his hand and tried thrusting it right towards Sora. As soon as he did, he saw another hand reach out to intercept the attack before Sora could use his drive to dodge the attack.

"**Look kid, I don't know what you did to make this asshole angry at you. But you best leave him to me. So get your ass out of here right now!**" Ragna said as Hazama simply gritted his teeth. "**Don't get in the way you fucking dog!**" Hazama shouted as Ragna stopped another attempted stab with his other hand. "**As if I give a fuck about what you think Terumi! I am going to crush you with ****my**** own hands!**" Ragna shouted as people began to run away from the scene, as if they could sense the danger that was growing as a result as Sora heard the sound of a vehicle approaching their direction.

"**Captain Hazama! Are you...**" But before The NOL guard who came in on his motorcycle could finish his sentence, having witnessed the scene of Hazama engaging with Ragna the Bloodedge, a third person suddenly appeared right in front of his face, terrifying the man as before Ragna and Hazama realized it, Sora was already in front of the guard, having used his drive to move to where the guard was to steal his ride.

"**Where did he...**" "**How did he…**" Hazama and Ragna said respectfully as Sora himself did not bother saying any other word to Ragna, simply grateful for the fact that he has a chance of escaping now thanks to the distraction Ragna was giving as he grabbed the officer by his collar and tossed him off his bike. As he flew into the air, Sora jumped up to intercept, kicking him right towards Hazama to not only force Hazama off his balance but also to delay even further as Ragna himself was forced to dodge the body coming his way.

As soon as his feet landed on the ground, Sora immediately leapt onto the bike, the key still left on the ignition as Sora quickly floored the accelerator and turned around, his experience with driving motorcycles immediately kicking in as he drove as quickly as he could in the opposite direction away from Hazama and Ragna. By the time the both of them realized what had happened, they were unable to stop him as Hazama gritted his tetth.

"**YOU JUST HAD TO RUIN THINGS HUH YOU STUPID MUTT.**" Hazama said, his teeth grinding at what had just happened as Ragna simply scoffed hearing that. "**Ruin things? After what you did to me and my family, I think you deserve even more coming your way.. YOU DAMN SNAKE!**" Ragna said as soon they violently clashed, the streets of Orient Town now left completely empty as Sora himself floored it, his senses now heightened to a point that even the slightest drop of water would get his attention.

'_**Got to avoid the streets, if the NOL's setting up roadblocks right now I have to just drive through the alleys.**_' Sora thought as his mind was racing with various solutions to the current problem he was in. This thing… whatever is trying to kill him, will most likely try to influence events so that he is forced to fight but the more things he can do to limit those events, the more he is able to narrow his possible angles of attack.

Soon Sora found himself needing to stop. While thinking what would be the best solution would be the best idea, he also knew that he needed to get a proper bearing of his location as he temporarily stopped his bike to make a quick call towards Caroline for her assistance on this. "**Hey Boss. Did something happen?**" Caroline said, quickly knowing that Sora rarely calls her and thus was able to deduce that this was something rather urgent if he was calling her.

"**Caroline. I need you to send me a full map of Kagutsuchi to my phone right now. As well I need you to disable any limiters you may have placed on the Rev Blade now. My life is currently in danger and I need all the power the system can give me now as well as any information.**" Sora said, his mind was in too much of a rush to think if the Rev System had any limitations in the first place but Caroline understood what he meant at that moment.

"**I'll send you all the latest information that the internet has on Kagutsuchi and some old maps of the city itself. Also I am disabling the Reverse Flow limiter in the Rev System so that you have a way of using Seithr. I'll send the instructions for that too as well.**" Caroline said, deducing that it was more efficient to give Sora a word document on how to operate the system rather than risk telling it to him and it all flying past his head as she could tell that Sora was in a state of focus and she didn't need to break it.

"**Also… The organization has managed to get in contact with Makoto and let her know that she's currently in danger. They also have their men watching her movements as we speak but it's going to be slow since she's also trying to dodge NOL guards.**" Caroline continued as any information she could feed to Sora at that moment would not only serve to help him greatly but also help to reduce his own burden in the process.

"**Thanks Caroline. I can find the spies on my own… also I sort of know what may be the cause of the memory loss. I will tell you the details later. For now, I need to get somewhere to process the info you gave me.**" Sora said as Caroline simply took a deep breath at that. "**Alright Boss… just make sure that you keep your eyes out. I'm noting an increased traffic of bodies in Kagutsuchi right now and not all of it is NOL.**" Caroline said before Sora simply took a deep breath of his own.

"**That's all I need to know. Thanks for everything Caroline.**" Sora said as he ended the call and sent a simple message to the four heads of Otsu, realizing he would have to start moving soon. The message simply read as, "**Heads, I need your help on something. Give me any info that the spies have gotten on Makoto as soon as possible. It will help me with pinning down her location.**" Sora messaged before he rode off on the stolen bike, his next plan of action now established as he soon exited Orient Town, noticing the signs and architecture of the buildings changing as his indication he was now far away from the location.

* * *

**...But he knew that his day was far from over… no matter how far he got from any part of Kagutsuchi.**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING!? I hope you all didn't mind the chaotic pace of this chapter. Personally I don't mind it but don't be afraid to let me know how you feel about this breakneck pace? Also to think we have already reached the end of the year already. God how time flies sometimes and before you know it. You are already at the end of the year.**

**I say this because if you really think about it. Life can be really short at times. So short in fact that I cannot help but wonder who thought that 12 months would be long enough for people to enjoy a year. Oh well. I don't really spend much time thinking about stuff like this because I just prefer to live in the moment and see where that takes me. Hopefully it takes me to a place where I can be happy in life and it should be the same for you too. Do whatever makes you happy and also helps you feel fulfilled at the same time.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TO SORA MINAKAZE IN THIS CRAZY ADVENTURE HE HAS BEEN FORCED TO PARTAKE IN!? WHAT NEW FACES WILL HE BE FORCED TO FIGHT AGAINST OR MEET!? AND WITH THE CRAZINESS THAT HAS BEEN THROWN HIS WAY, CAN HE FIND MAKOTO NANAYA IN THE MADNESS! ALL THESE QUESTIONS AND MORE WILL BE ANSWERED NEXT YEAR SO HANG ON TIGHT BECAUSE THE RIDE WILL CONTINUE ONE!**


	19. Canon 18: Parks and Reveals

( A NEW CANON HAS ARRIVED. And while time may have gone quickly for Sora Minakaze, time has progressed slower for us. So let us see what is going to happen next.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 18

For how long was he running? Sora did not care at this point. His mind was simply focused on trying to get as much distance as possible from anybody who might see him. He simply kept his foot on the pedal, not bothering to slow down until he began to hear the motorcycle slowly start to give out, having run out of gas from being driven at maximum. '_**Shit...**_' Sora simply thought as he slowed down the motorcycle, coming to a stop at a park where various layers of flowers ranging from roses to hibiscus were laid out in an intricate manner.

Sora soon stopped the bike at a nearby lamp post, next to a park bench he could sit by and a balcony view he could take a look around. Sora wanted to keep moving but soon realized that he was rushing as he stopped himself from going any further. '_**What are you doing Sora? There is no need to rush things like you are right now.**_' Sora thought as he soon took a seat by the bench, his gaze now looking towards the horizon view that the balcony gave as he just forced himself to take a deep breath.

'_**Calm down Sora... Calm down dammit...**_' Sora thought as he took several deep breathes to keep himself calm as at this point, his haste was going to cause him to make another mistake and if he did not stop to take his breath at this point, he was going to make that mistake much sooner. As soon as he took his deep breathes, he realized that he may have already made a couple of mistakes in his haste to get away as he had instinctively blurted out to Caroline if she had made any limiters to the Rev Blade.

'_**God... in my haste I made an assumption about something again...**_' Sora thought as he was trying to fix some bad habits he had picked up ever since his mercenary days as well as when he had to keep the whole Black Lotus invading Torifune a secret for the longest time until he had no choice. Slowly he had been trying to get himself to stop trying to presume stuff like if a weapon has limiters he did not know about without bothering to think about the creator of the weapon who may have purposely left the limiters on for good reason.

Sora took several deep breathes as he knew he needed to slowly figure out some things about his current situation before he proceeded any further. First of all, he needed to figure out what his current situation was like as he closed his eyes and began to visualize the situation in front of him. '_**Alright... so firstly, I am currently being chased by a god like being for something I don't even know I had commit and that god like being has been erasing my existence as a result. So far from meeting Jin and Tsubaki, this means that their memories of me are completely gone as a result of this god's tampering.**_'

As Sora continued to collect his thoughts, Sora pulled out a cigarette and lighter, lighting the cigarette but instead of smoking it, hovered it close to his nose so he only got the vapors and none of the actual nicotine itself. He tried smoking once, ended up coughing heavily as a result when the vapors went down his throat and into his lungs and while he knew that smelling the smoke like this was just as unhealthy as smoking the cigarette itself, it at least was better than getting addicted to the stuff in the first place as it had a sort of calming effect on him at that moment.

'_**So as a result of this god like being tampering with my friends and their memories, I have to safely presume that everyone has forgotten about me... even if I don't want to admit it.**_' Sora thought as his mind went back to Makoto, clutching on the necklace with the rev arm as the more he thought about it, the more pain he felt at the idea that when he would see her, she would simply give him a who are you just like Jin and Tsubaki. That he would be just another stranger to her. And no connection would be there... not even a faint memory of them being in love would remain.

All of what they had experienced together, ripped apart by this god like being who simply wants him dead... for what reason? He didn't even know or cared at this point. All he knew was that god was literally trying to fuck him over for some reason, destroy everything he had worked hard to gain for himself and get rid of him at the same time as he crushed the cigarette in his hand and slammed it right on the park bench, ignoring the searing pain the cigarette caused on his normal hand as his rage was simply growing at this point.

"_**God dammit Sora... you got to calm down right now.**_" Sora said to himself as he realized his anger was starting to get to him again as he took a couple of deep breathes once again to bring himself back to a calm state as getting angry at this point was useless. He just needed to find a way to get even as Amy might be his key in getting even as his survival was much more important in this case. So trying to find Makoto in the first place was not the logical choice... but since when was he a logical person?

'_**Even if it hurts me... I need to find Makoto... I need to see that she's alright. Even if she doesn't recognize who I am.**_' Sora thought as regardless to how dumb and illogical it was. There was simply a part of him that refused to give up on her in the end as opened his eyes, greeted by the sky blue horizon in front of him as he released his grip on the cigarette, causing it to drop on the ground as he smiled a bit. "_**And if I have to bet... you would be looking for me too if you still have your memories of me too...right Makoto?**_" Sora said with a bit of hope in his voice as he clutched tighter on the pendant strapped to his neck, his determination to find Makoto now renewed as he decided that he needed to take the time to prepare for that as he pulled out the file that Caroline gave him to see what it had.

'_**If I remember right. It was some maps of Kagutsuchi including old ones, a basic blueprint on the Rev system including by the look of it, this Reverse Flow system designed for it that I will need to do some more reading up on and most importantly, all the spies that the Otsu four heads have currently stationed in Kagutsuchi.**_' Sora thought, going by his own memory and the files Caroline had sent him what he wanted to know and what Caroline thought he should know at this point.

"_**Right...to avoid making another mistake, I better make sure I go through this whole list properly and slowly.**_" Sora mumbled as soon his fingers drifted towards the contents of the files, his eyes scanning each one with the precision and care each required for his attention. This was something he would have not done before, in fact if he did this, he would start rushing it quickly, trying to get things done preferably on his own.

He still would like to do things on his own but at least this is a sign that he's starting to show some sort of growth to his character instead of stagnating like most people would. His eyes soon started to scan the Reverse Flow system as he began to read the notes carefully crafted by Caroline for him to understand. "_**Alright, let's see what this Reverse Flow system is all about.**_" Sora said as his eyes soon began to read the instructions given to him by Caroline

"**The Reverse Flow system is a backup system designed to allow people who have excessive amounts of Seithr or absorb Seithr in a rapid rate an alternative method to using the Rev System when there are situations that said person is unable to use Seithr for a wide variety of reasons. (Exp: ****There is a lack of Seithr in the area due to a variety of factors or Seithr is being sapped away in the area, preventing the Rev System from being used.)**"

"_**Oh Caroline this is already becoming overkill...**_" Sora complained as he was already struggling to read through the mumbo jumbo that Caroline was already throwing his direction. He just needed to know how to operate the damn thing, not 3 whole pages on what the Rev system was, how it was made and the development history behind it. "_**Caroline must have just gotten lazy and expected me to just go straight to how to operate it.**_" Sora mumbled out in complaint as he finally found the documents that contained the instruction manual on how he was supposed to operate the Reverse Flow system in the first place as he took the Rev Arm out and reassembled it to it's Rev Blade form to begin the process.

"_**So first disassemble the brake system by...**_" Sora mumbled as he began to follow the instructions that Caroline gave to activate the Reverse Flow system, screwing out some stuff before reinserting them in different positions, exposing parts that Sora had never seen before as he couldn't help but feel like he was beginning to see a brand new weapon get assembled right in front of him. "_**And finally inverse the blade to complete the transformation.**_" Sora said as he did what the instructions had said, completing the conversion of the Rev Blade to now allow the Reverse Flow system to activate as he realized what he was looking at...

"_**Wait a minute, this looks like the exact same blade but the colors are now inversed.**_" Sora said as the colors of the Rev Blade before was primarily white with some black trim and yellow stitching. Now it had primarily a black color scheme with white trim and the same yellow stitching. "_**Is this really now able to use the Reverse Flow system like Caroline... Oh who cares. If I keep thinking about stuff like this, I am going to give myself a fucking headache.**_" Sora said, deciding to take Caroline's instructions to her word as he revved the Rev Blade, making sure it worked.

"_**So if I do it the opposite way...**_" as Soon as Sora did that, he revved the Rev system in the opposite Direction. Immediately, he felt a recoil throughout his body as the handle of the Rev blade had jutted out some small spikes, jabbing them into his palm as he felt the Seithr inside him flow into the Rev system as it soon activated. "**ENHANCED GEAR!**" The Rev Blade shouted as Sora couldn't help but look around with some panic as he quickly pressed the brake to dispel the Seithr it had absorbed.

"_**Got to be fucking careful with this damn thing and it's whole shouting out what level of Seithr charge it has.**_"Sora said as he took a few deep breathes before finally settling down on his seat, slumping down onto the park bench once more as he looked at the Rev Blade, surprised by what it had just done as he shook his hand for a bit. '_**And god did that hurt. I need to be careful using this thing from now on.**_' Sora said to himself as he decided that sitting down was not doing him any good anymore so he stood up, sheathing the Rev Blade behind his back and walked towards the balcony.

Leaning forward on the Balcony, Sora couldn't help but start to take in the scenery that was in front of him. He was used to the lower levels of his hometown of Otsu, dangerously close to the ground but high enough that Seithr didn't just consume it. So seeing nothing but clouds instead of the ruins of an old city was a strange experience for him. The thought that such a view can only be seen in Otsu was something that made Sora smile a little as it was a little badge of honor he had as his hands went to his pockets.

"_**What the?**_" Sora said as his hands reached out to his pockets and soon pulled out the pill bottle that he had taken from Tager who dropped it before. "_**Oh yeah... I wanted to give this back to Tager when I saw him.**_" Sora muttered as he tossed the pill bottle in the air, carefully and dexterously catching the pill bottle with each toss in the air at the balcony. He knew that he should probably not do that as if something were to happen like he would get spooked all of the sudden and he failed to catch it then. It would fall all the way down to the abyss and there was no way to get it.

'_**Alright just one more toss then I am done.**_' Sora thought as he tossed the pill bottle for the last time into the air. Sometimes, in life, whether it maybe the last cookie on the plate or wanting to toss a pill bottle in the air for the last time before you kept it, it's always the one more time that screws you over. In this case, it happened as Sora raised his hand, ready to catch the pill bottle as it began to go down it's descent.

"**H-EY! ****PUT THAT BOTTLE DOWN NOW!****!**" A voice shouted, spooking Sora as he turned away briefly before feeling the pill bottle hit his hand. Even with all of the speed in the world, Sora was unable to catch the pill bottle in time as it bounced right off his hand and far enough that not even Sora using his Drive would matter as Sora quickly turned back to the pill bottle's direction, placing his whole body over the rail to see it descend down to the abyss below.

'_**...Well... Shit.**_' Sora thought as he couldn't believe what had just happened as he soon felt the back of his shirt get grabbed and he was pulled violently back to the ground as his back was thrown into the park bench as a pair of hands grabbed his shirt and began to shake him violently. "**WHAT HAVE YOU DONE****!?**" The person shouted, anger clear in his voice as Sora was quick to piece together that the pill bottle was most likely intended for this person as he raised his hands in Self Defense.

"**Well... Technically, I was trying to catch it when you startled me and caused ****me**** to drop it so... can we just say it's a fault of both parties and move on with our lives?**" Sora said, hoping to keep things civil not only to avoid having to have another fight in his hands, but also hoping that for once, talking things out with people was the right solution and not what leads into another god damn fight for him to take.

The man didn't even reply to his words, just mumbling to himself as he walked back and forth as Sora couldn't help but feel a nagging sensation scream at the back of his neck, the sensation that he needed to look at the man who was talking to him as his voice, while slightly husky, he sounded...rather familiar. As the man sighed in frustration, Sora decided to get a better look at his face, raising his head to see who it was that had grabbed him violently and tossed him to a park bench.

At first, Sora's eyes blinked for a bit. He thought he was hallucinating things and closed his eyes tightly to focus harder on the image in front of him. It was then that Sora could see it, the spiky hair, the glowing red right eye, the almost pretty boy image. It couldn't be him, he was supposedly reported dead by various news outlets that covered his death intensely. "**Hey you.. Please... Excuse me. I'm Sorry I..****.**" The man said, turning his head towards Sora's direction as that was enough to make Sora's eyes widen as he stood up, staring right at the person who was supposed to be dead.

"**Hunter is that you?!**" Sora said in shock, forgetting for a brief moment that everyone's memories of him were scrambled, so that would have meant that Hunter's too were scrapped as when said his name, Sora couldn't help but feel his face go a bit pale as the man turned his head at hearing the name Hunter. As soon as his face was in full view, it was now confirmed for Sora that this was Hunter Long, The student who went on to become a major in the NOL and even lead a squadron called the Vermillion Dragoons thanks to his role the in the Black Lotus war.

His appearance however had changed drastically. The most significant of these changes was that his hair was no longer a bright red but instead a near ash like black, the left side of his hair covering his left eye as Sora was quick to notice that his right eye was not glowing as intensely or to be more accurate not at all as his left one as it was clearly missing and his skin looked pale, as if he was reach death's door at this point. Sora was shocked by Hunter's appearance but Hunter was shocked by something else entirely.

'_**Oh...Shit...**_' Sora thought, realizing that Hunter was reacting to the fact that someone he did not know him just said his name so casually as Sora scratched his head several times after realizing his mistake. '_**Maybe I can try tricking him with some words?**_' Sora thought as his mind was quick to formulate a couple of sentences he could use to throw the man off his scent as Sora knew he had to give an answer quickly otherwise it would raise Hunter's suspicions even more.

"**Well..I mean... Sorry if you are not Hunter Long. It's just... you look like him a little. I mean there are some differences but you...**" Sora suddenly stopped talking when he noticed Hunter's nose start to twitch, Hunter sniffing several times as Sora couldn't help but feel a chill crawl up his back as he had forgotten about Hunter's nose, which was sensitive to lies. '_**God damn you Hunter and your god damn lie detecting nose.**_' Sora thought as Hunter got closer to Sora, his eyes starting to dig right into Sora's soul.

"**Who the hell are you?..**" Hunter muttered, his voice becoming serious as he said those words. Sora felt the sweat behind his back drip in an extremely slow manner as he realized that he might have been too hasty with his words as Sora knew at that point there was no use trying to lie against someone who has what is essentially a lie detector test attached to his nose as Sora took a couple of deep breathes, looking at Hunter as he decided to be straight with him.

* * *

Sora: **Okay look... I know this is going to sound crazy... but we know each other. Your memories of me are most likely screwed but we have met before.**

Hunter: **Yeah... I bet we do know each other...**

Sora:** I am being serious here. I am not trying to fuck with you right now because there's nothing I can gain from lying to you. You can tell can you. Your nose is not acting up right now... so you must think I am a good liar. But I am speaking the truth, Try sniffing me again and try and smell the lies from me.**

* * *

Hunter couldn't help but hold his surprise at Sora's words, touching his nose instinctively as Sora's words were true at that moment

* * *

Hunter:**...How do you know about that?..**

Sora: **Look. I just do because I know who you are. You are Hunter Long, the supposedly reported Deceased Major at the NOL who had his own Squadron called the Vermillion Dragoons, who was credited with a medal of honor for his role in stopping the Black Lotus invasion and also supposedly has access to what is known as the Lost Nox Nyctores... Is there anything else you want me to say to test that nose of yours?**

* * *

As Sora bombarded Hunter with what was essentially an information overload, he couldn't help but hope that this info dump would be enough to convince Hunter that while he is not exactly a friendly, he's not a hostile as well. '_**Just a little bit more. Hunter needs a bit more convincing before he at least trusts me a little.**_' Sora thought as he saw Hunter hold his hand to his head, pressing his palm hard on his forehead as his thoughts were roaming all over the place in the process.

Sora swallowed his saliva as he realized that he needed just one last push, one last sentence to convince Hunter that he was someone to trust. His thoughts ran for a bit before he realized a solution...a risky one that could end up blowing up on his face but if he didn't try it now, when will he ever try it? "**If you want confirmation... Go and ask Makoto Nanaya... She may still remember me I don't know but I know her so yeah...**"

Sora did it, he had pulled the trigger. Sora had said Makoto's name. The name of a person who hung out with Hunter a lot during his Academy years. Sora himself didn't know how Hunter would react to a nobody saying the name of his best friend as if they were nothing. Sora gulped as Hunter simply remained quiet the moment Sora mentioned her name. "**Makoto...too?..**" Hunter simply muttered as his mind began to piece together the events that happened a few hours ago...

* * *

**When he met with Tager in order to get his medicine.**

* * *

**FLASHBACK**

* * *

It had been a long day for Hunter Long. To recap his entire life at this point would be a challenge even for him as he struggled to walk the simple flight of steps that a normal person would be able to walk with ease. '**God Dammit Kokonoe. Can you at least take into consideration my health and select a place without much walking next time?..**' Hunter thought, his right arm holding firmly on the stairway railing to the point it nearly bent as he dragged himself to the top.

Hunter Long has been in Kagutsuchi for a while. Hell he was here when all hell broke loose, when he went down to the cauldron and saw Noel there. He wasn't awake for long due to injuries he suffered there so by the time he had woken up, Noel Vermillion was long gone. Despite knowing that Noel was somewhere in Kagutsuchi, Hunter himself couldn't help but feel a sense of unease as he struggled to find the words he wanted to say to Noel as he took a couple more steps.

'**Noel...**' Hunter thought sadly as he stopped walking for a bit before he continued, his body still aching in pain... pain that was there long before he got injured again by the being in the Cauldron. He needed the medication that Kokonoe promised to give him, the life saving medicine that has been keeping him alive for the longest time. He needed that so he could go and find Noel and tell her how he felt... how he was sorry for leaving her alone for so long... how he didn't tell her that he was alive and allowed her to suffer in silence.

'**Noel...please... hang in there for me.**' Hunter thought as he walked up the stairs, seeing Tager sit down on a bench as he walked towards Tager before sitting down next to him. "**So how long have you been waiting here huh?..**" Hunter asked as Tager didn't even bother turning around to face Hunter, keeping his gaze forward as he got into the conversation. "I** have only been here for at least a few hours now but do not worry. Kokonoe has been working me to the bone after all.**" Tager said as Hunter couldn't help but laugh a bit at that.

"**Tell me about it... if it wasn't for the fact I am injured right now, she would be making me do the same thing... not that I would want to work for her directly anyways.**" Hunter said, thinking about his current life situation where he is not working for anybody in particular, just trying to make ends meet doing vigilante work while figuring out why the NOL wanted him dead in the first place. "**So... are we going to make the drop or is there someone else we are waiting for?**" Hunter continued as Tager simply nodded his head.

Soon, a pair of footsteps were heard as Hunter couldn't help but turn his head towards the direction of the footsteps as his eyes soon widen at the person who came from the stairs. Her big bushy brown tail with white and black stripes immediately gave away who it was and if that wasn't enough, the squirrel ears hiding underneath her beret as they twitched slightly were enough to confirm Hunter who it was.

"**There you are Tager! I have been...looking...for you...**" Makoto said as her speech slowly went to a crawl as without even saying a word, she ran up to Hunter and simply gave him a tight hug, Hunter simply keeping quiet before he smiled and hugged her back. "**What's the matter Makoto?.. You look like you have seen a ghost?**" Hunter said, trying to bring some sort of cheer towards Makoto's way, thinking that Makoto herself must be dealing with some sort of shock of seeing a dead guy who she probably thought was dead for the longest time was dead... being back alive.

Makoto however... didn't need such humor as she clutched Hunter harder in her hands, unwilling to break out the hug as Tager knew he had to break up the happy moment as he cleared his throat. "**As much as I would hate to interrupt such a touching moment like this... we have business that we need to complete quick.**" Tager said as Makoto simply nodded her head at that as she pulled away from the hug. "**There...this is a lot for me to process right now... but all I can say is simply... it's good to see that you're alive Hunter.**" Makoto said as Hunter couldn't help but smile at that.

"**Me too Makoto... I am glad that I got to see you too. Though I... wait a minute... YOU'RE THE SECRET SPY THAT KOKONOE HAD PLANTED!?**" Hunter said in shock as Makoto simply looked at him with a blank look on her face as she simply rubbed her forehead. "**Look it's a really long story and I am just here to meet with the big guy to get some details from Kokonoe herself. We can figure out the bigger details later after we get out of this alive...**" Makoto said, surprising Hunter as she sounded serious... much more serious than how she was before.

"**You're right about that... so...Tager, do you have my medicine?**" Hunter asked, realizing that he shouldn't linger for too much longer at this point and while he wanted to talk with Makoto just a bit longer, they both seem to be pretty busy at the moment which simply meant that they needed to go out there and get the stuff they needed to do done. "**Hold on for a moment Hunter. I have your medication so there is no worry about that.**" Tager responded as his hand soon reached towards his pocket.

Soon, the calm Tager began to pat his pockets with his massive gauntlets even more, worrying Hunter in the process. "**You... You have the medicine in those undersized pockets of yours right...Tager?**" Hunter questioned as Tager continued to pat his pockets even faster, not panicking outside but both Makoto and Hunter knew that deep inside, the Red Devil himself was beginning to panic as he knew... this was something that Professor Kokonoe needed to know.

"**Professor...I need to confirm with you on something. Bringing this to a private channel.**" Tager said as soon he went quiet, disturbing both Makoto and Hunter as he stood there, remaining silent before Tager looked at Hunter. "**I... am afraid I have some bad news for you.**" Tager said as Hunter's face couldn't help but pale hearing those words. "**Please... please don't say what I think you are going to say?**" Hunter said as he couldn't help but feel his feet go out as he dropped to his knees.

"**Unfortunately...I have somehow managed to lose the medication needed to keep you alive.**" those words Tager said simply caused Hunter's heart to drop as Makoto stared at Hunter, saddened to see him broken like this. "**Fortunately. I suspect that we can still retrieve it from the person we suspect may still have it.**" Tager said as Hunter looked at him with a sudden burning determination as he stood up and grabbed Tager in his vest.

"**THEN TELL ME ALREADY! I NEED TO KNOW NOW!..**" Hunter said as Tager kept quiet for a bit, looking at Makoto for a moment as Hunter looked at Makoto, noticing that she had to look away for a bit, biting her lips in the process as Tager decided to say it. "**The person's name is Sora Minakaze. I had a bit of an unfortunate encounter with him yesterday and must have dropped it in the middle of combat. I suspect that he might have it but I am not certain about it.**" Tager continued as Hunter looked at him before looking back at Makoto, seeing her expression tighten even more as she didn't say a word.

"**Do you know something about this...Sora Minakaze Makoto?**" Hunter asked, his gaze focused on Makoto as she simply remained still. "**I do... but I am looking for him myself... Sorry.**" Makoto said as she walked up to Tager and whispered something to his ear as the Red Devil simply nodded. "**I'm sorry Hunter, I need to go now. We will catch up later.**" Makoto said, walking away from the scene as Hunter couldn't help but keep staring at Makoto's direction as something was clear to him.

* * *

**Makoto knew much more than what she was implying...**

* * *

"**I see... so that is why Makoto is acting Strange...**" Hunter muttered from his voice as Sora barely heard his voice. "**Ummm Hunter?**" Sora questioned as he saw Hunter focus his gaze down. Something was wrong and Sora could tell there was so much more going on at this point as Hunter made his weapon, The lost Nox Nyctores, Draco but it's appearance has changed since the last time he had seen Hunter.

Before, Draco was a straight blade jutting out of what looked to be a Dragon's maw wrapped around what seemed to be an almost organic like chain and runes. Now, Draco looked drastically different, the runes now streaming all over the weapon with the chains how extending past the maw itself and wrapping itself around Hunter's hand. The biggest change was to the blade itself as it was no long just a straight blade but instead a crude looking saw like blade, the points of the blade extremely blunt instead of being sharp as before.

"**You must be after her... which means that You're the Sora Minakaze that she was looking for. The same Sora Minakaze who stole my medicine and dropped it into the abyss...**" Hunter said, his voice become lower and much more primal as Sora couldn't help but feel a bit unnerved by the way Hunter was behaving at this point. He was not trying to socialize or trying to be a bit more positive but instead showed more of his hostility towards him, causing Sora to feel a sense of unease as Hunter soon stared right at him, his eye glowing greatly.

"**So to recap... You stole my medicine for no reason, dropped it into the abyss because you wanted to have your fun with it... and You also know me and Makoto very well...claiming that we were friends once... Now I am no genius but you have to agree... that in by itself... is very suspicious don't you think?**" Hunter said as he tightened his grip on Draco, causing Sora to tense up even more as without warning, Hunter leapt towards him, Sora barely dodging out of the way as Hunter destroyed the park bench, causing splinters everywhere as Sora was shocked by how wildly he swung his blade.

"**WOAH WOAH!**" Sora yelled as he did not want to fight Hunter at that moment, trying to instead resolve his current issue with diplomacy and peace rather than fighting and war. Sora himself did not want to engage in several fights in a single day, having already have to fight for his life at least three times today. However Hunter looked like he was not going to have any of it as Sora couldn't help but hold his head, feeling a strange presence lurk inside his mind.

"**You...Losing your cool...tapping...power...**" A voice uttered as Sora couldn't help but shake his head even more, realizing that the voice he had heard was not aimed at his direction but instead towards Hunter. "**Not Now...if anything...right now...I need it even more than ever...**" Hunter said as Sora heard Hunter say it audibly, his voice now raised as he looked at Sora, placing his blade on his shoulder and stared right at Sora with a death glare Sora had never thought was possible from a person like him.

"**Woah...Hunter...Please...Calm down. We don't need to continue on with violence. Why don't you put down your weapon and we have a conversation that doesn't involve us having to forcibly fight against each other...**" Sora said, raising his hands in a surrendering position as he had hoped to convince Hunter that he was not willing to fight. However Hunter seemed to care about his words, slowly entering his stance once again as he continued to stare at him with a death like glare, looking like was about to explode.

"**Oh?.. Don't worry about that Sora... I'll make sure to keep things...Civil.**" Hunter said as he remained in stance as he emitted out an aura of power, causing the ground to shake a little as Hunter simply planned to fight Sora... his mind focused not on trying to resolve things peacefully or understand people like before but now replaced with an anger that seemed to overwrite all sense of logic as Sora sighed, realizing that the diplomacy he had hoped for...simply failed.

"**So come on... come over here... SO I CAN PUT YOU TO THE DAMN GROUND!**" Hunter shouted, reasoning gone for some reason as Sora couldn't help but look away from this sight. '_**No... This isn't right... what's happened to you Hunter.**_' Sora thought as something must have happened to Hunter for him to become... like this. An incident so severe that it was enough to make him unable to try and trust him and even resort to violence to solve this as Sora clenched his fist.

"**If I have to fight to get you to listen to me... then fine. A fight is what you're going to get.**" Sora said as Sora took off the cloak he was using, letting the wind blow it out of the way as he knew he had to get serious for this fight otherwise Hunter will absolutely kill him as his cloak soon caught itself onto a pole, allowing Hunter to see that Sora was missing an arm as Sora didn't need to feel his way towards the Rev Blade that was on his back, pulling it out as he gave Hunter his own determined stare as both Sora and Hunter simply prepared themselves...

* * *

**...For a fight...**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HAPPY NEW YEARS! (Or New Year's eve for those who have yet to reach New Years.) I HOPE YOU ALL ARE DOING WELL! 2019 has been a rather eventful year for us all. The list of events that have happened to us in this year are endless but at least the more things change, the more some things remain the same. Overall, the 2010's has been a rather interesting decade for us with it's own list of events that we would have thought were only possible in a fanfiction itself. God life can be weird at times.**

**Regardless. If you all think I will have any resolutions? I honestly don't really have any resolutions. I just want to keep giving you guys content that not only interest you all but also keeps you interested for the long run. So whether it's 2019 or 2020 or 2200 (I know, that is too long and I would be dead by then.) I just want to keep writing stories for you all that will come to appreciate and love and remember, at the end of the day fanfiction is a way for people to connect to the main story that people write about so if you like this story, don't hesitate to check out the Blazblue story itself even if it's a convoluted mess that needs it's own fixing.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!? HOW WILL THE FIGHT BETWEEN HUNTER AND SORA TURN OUT!? JUST WHAT HAPPENED TO HUNTER FROM THE PAST FEW YEARS SINCE WE LAST SAW HIM!? CAN SORA CALM DOWN THE NOW ENRAGED HUNTER OR WILL HE HAVE TO RESULT TO VIOLENCE ONCE MORE? Well... Hang on to your seats as 2020 will not stop for anyone. Not even for our heroes.**


	20. Canon 19: The Dragon vs The Error

( A NEW BLACK! And we now have stumbled between a battle between two friends... what will Sora do at this point? Let us find out...)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 19

Previously on Canon Distortion...

Sora Minakaze had escaped from his pursuers and was trying to think of his next move. As he relaxed a little during what was a tense time for him, Hunter Long suddenly appeared, causing Sora to accidentally drop the bottle of medication meant for him. After some attempts to calm Hunter down failing, Sora assumes a battle stance in order to defend himself from what appears to be a vengeful Hunter...

And now... The continuation of Canon Distortion.

* * *

It had been just 15 seconds since Hunter and Sora assumed battle stances against each other. For the two, it felt more like minutes had passed. In one hand, Hunter Long, a person who Sora knew from the academy a long time ago for being a fighter using a weapon that most people say has the power to match a Nox Nyctores and fought more like a wild animal and lacked technique. 2 years of wars and battles has clearly hardened him in some way as he slowly leaned in and continued to stare right at Sora.

For Sora this was something different entirely. For him, since he personally knew Hunter while Hunter did not know him at all, it was kind of difficult for him to justify the senseless fight that was going to take place at this point. '_**I just want to end this fight as peacefully as possible and try to get Hunter to see some common sense for once in his life...**_' Sora thought as his grip on the Rev Blade tightened, his goal being to cause as little harm as possible to Hunter so that he could try to reason with him again.

Suddenly, Hunter let out a sigh, alarming Sora as he leaned in forward, telegraphing his attack to the white haired man as Sora steeled himself for Hunter's first move. Hunter suddenly lunged forward, the saw like blade of Draco being swung as if it was mere knife towards Sora's head which forced Sora to raise the Rev Blade to block said attack. After blocking the attack, Sora quickly delivered a swift strike from the pommel of the Rev Blade right onto Hunter's chest to create some distance and using his first attack to determine what he needed to watch out for.

'_**Hunter's gotten faster **__**with that thing that is for sure… but what else has he learned over the years...**_' Sora thought as he was trying to use Hunter's attacks as a way to gauge how much power he would need to subdue Hunter without harming him. '_**Even if you are hostile with me Hunter… even if I need to fight you… please don't force me to go all out to keep you down Hunter.**_' Sora thought as Hunter looked visibly annoyed as Sora could feel that something was very wrong with Hunter in the head.

Hunter stabbed his sword in frustration, the sword easily cutting through stone and concrete as it glowed red briefly before Hunter cleaved the ground, causing rocks and dust to kick up into the air right into Sora's direction, flying towards him at high speed. Sora, quick to respond to the attack, quickly revved up the Rev Blade to it's enhanced gear before clicking on the Brake handle. "**ENHANCED GEAR!**" The Rev Blade yelled as Sora quickly sliced at the air, blasting a gust of Seithr right into the rocks and dust, causing them to reflect back right at Hunter at twice the speed they originally had.

As Sora was doing this however, Hunter had already been moving closer to attack Sora, using the debris he launched right at Sora as more of a distraction rather than as an actual attack as he raised Draco to block the debris launched back right at him before in one swift and clean motion, Hunter raised his blade above his head and swung forward for another attack that Sora was able to block once again but with great difficulty.

"**HUNTER! We don't need to fight like this!**" Sora yelled, trying to get Hunter to see some common sense in his life. "**We can just stop and try to talk things out again!**" Sora yelled some more as he was hoping that his desperate pleas would not fall down on deaf ears and Hunter would actually consider his words instead of blindly fighting like the way he is currently. That despite the current hostility he was being shown, Hunter would let up eventually and be willing to talk.

"**SHUT IT!**" Hunter yelled, all sense of reasoning gone as he raised his fist, revealing to Sora a metal hand as the sleeves of the black overcoat Hunter was wearing slid down a little to reveal said metal hand to Sora. "**The only real thing that can get to a person these days… IS A FREAKING SPLIT SKULL!**" Hunter yelled, punching Draco's blade with the metal hand, forcing the blade deeper as Sora head got struck by the flat side of the Rev Blade when he did that as Sora shook his head to recover.

As soon as Sora saw Hunter raise his metal fist to drive it towards Draco once again, he immediately retaliated once again with a kick to his stomach this time, putting distance between him and Hunter once again as he created more distance by retreating. As he did this, Hunter pieced together in his head what Sora was trying to do at this point. '**This guy is trying to create distance so he can observe me and figure out how to attack me… if that's the case then I don't have to hold back for this guy!**' Hunter thought as Sora noticed Hunter doing something strange with Draco, retracting the blade into the maw.

'Now what is he going to do!?' Sora thought as he couldn't help but get a bad feeling from what Hunter was planning to do next as Hunter swung the maw around a few times. Then all of the sudden, Sora could hear a loud and chunky click come from the maw as suddenly, the maw disconnected itself from the handle, crashing to the ground as Sora could see what seemed to be wisps of flame connecting the maw with the handle in a chain like manner, almost looking like a glowing chain.

'_**Well...Th**__**at **__**is new.**_' Sora thought, having never seen this form of Draco before as Hunter swung the handle upwards, which in turn made the maw fly up into the air as he began to give it a few spins in the air to build up the power. As he did so, Sora could feel hot air rise up and strike him in the chest as before Sora knew it, Hunter swung down, causing the maw to fly down like a meteor from the sky as it came down fast but by his own estimations, it should have been fast enough for him to intercept with just blocking.

As Sora raised the Rev Blade to block however, the maw suddenly opened it's mouth as it faced the sky and what erupted out of the maw was flames that caused the maw to accelerate from the sky much faster than Sora was expecting. "_**Oh Shi!**_" Before Sora could even finish his sentence, the maw had already collided with Sora's guard, sliding across the Rev Blade and right into Sora's chest, knocking the wind right out of him as he crashed right onto the ground in a semi staggered state.

As Sora staggered to the ground, Hunter immediately had the chain retract back towards him quickly until it reached a point where he could spin the chain once again rapidly as his eyes were focused on Sora's chest which now had the symbol of Draco implanted on his chest, which Sora was unaware off as he was busy focusing on recovering. "**Now hold still for me… It will be easier for both you and me.**" Hunter said, his eyes staring at Sora like a predator ready to kill it's prey as he launched the maw once again at Sora like a meteor, his aim intended for the back of Sora's head which will instantly kill him.

As Hunter thought he had Sora as soon as he saw Sora got up to his knees, his eyes blinked for a moment. That momentary loss of vision on his opponent was enough to suddenly shock him when suddenly his attack that was aimed for his opponents head missed and Sora was now instead in front of the maw, having dived away from said attack. His mind couldn't register what he had just seen as he clearly was watching Sora Minakaze get to his knees, not on the ground and getting up as he continued to stare.

As this was happening however, Hunter had failed to pay attention to the maw retracting as Sora managed to grab a hold onto the chain when Hunter finally regained focus. That focus soon turned into shock as he realized that the chain of Draco was now dragging his opponent closer towards him, leaving him no time to react as having abandoned the Rev Blade to grab the chain, he instead delivered a powerful flying kick using the momentum gained from the chain, pushing both him and Hunter away from each other as they stared right at each other once more.

Sora's sudden trick had suddenly brought Hunter's momentum to a stop, causing him to hesitate to attack as he was not sure what had just happened and was now on high alert. '**Now's my chance to push my offensive.**' Sora thought as he leapt back and grabbed the Rev Blade behind him, tossing it into the air as it spun a few times before he spun around, aligning his leg with the handle of the Rev Blade and kicking it right towards Hunter's direction with force, causing it to soar into the air as Hunter reflexively deflected the blade tossed right at him upwards, ejecting Draco's blade to do so.

As he did so, his gaze was taken away from Sora once again as when his blade passed his eyes, Sora was no longer in front of him as he instinctively looked up to see Sora soaring above him, catching him off guard yet again as Sora caught the Rev Blade and thrust downwards, causing it to crash with Hunter's guard in time as he kicked Draco, creating distance once again as now Hunter's senses were starting to kick in.

'**He did it again!? So my eyes aren't playing tricks with me!**' Hunter thought as his moment of hesitation was the cue that Sora needed to start pressing the attack. And press the attack Sora did as he charged towards Hunter without hesitation in his eyes, forcing Hunter to block several times his Rev Blade strikes as he wanted to force Hunter into a defensive stance so he had started to use his drive in order to throw Hunter off his balance.

As soon as Hunter was thrown off guard, this gave Sora the chance to apply more pressure right onto Hunter to force him to give him an opening. Soon Sora began to use the momentum gained from swinging the Rev Blade to continue attacking in a rapid pace, pushing Hunter with each strike as Hunter could feel the ground give out behind him as he was looking for his grip on the ground. '**TCH! How on Earth is he even swinging that blade of his with just one arm!? He's not even bothering to ****grip**** that weapon of his at all!**' Hunter thought as frustration began to grow.

'**Okay tough guy! You've had your fucking fun. My turn!**' Hunter thought as when Sora swung his next strike, Hunter immediately retracted his blade and opened out his maw, catching the Rev Blade with the Maw with the intent of breaking it by simply chomping on it like had done with most other bladed weapons. However Hunter struggled to do so as instead of chomping down like he had expected, his eyes were now able to see that the Rev Blade was simply a block of metal shaped like a blade. It wouldn't even be able to cut but it made a great bludgeoning tool however for what he wanted to do originally, it was not going to work.

'**In that case… HOW ABOUT THIS!**' Hunter thought as suddenly with power, Hunter forced the Rev Blade out of the way, exposing Sora's chest and the ignition point as the maw opened up revealing a seal of flame at the end as Sora felt the sensation of a distortion hit him. "**BLAZING FLARE!**" Hunter yelled as a massive jet of flame ejected itself from the maw in a furious motion. At such close range, most normal people would have not only been hit but also end up blown up by the ignition point being struck by the flames as Sora realized he needed to act otherwise he was going to die.

At that very moment, Hunter kept his eyes open. He wanted to see for himself what Sora was doing. Was he moving so fast that his eyes were unable to keep up or was he using another means to disappear from sight. Hunter's eyes continued to stare at Sora like a hawk as he saw Sora standing in place, the flames about to touch the ignition seal. He then saw Sora simply vanish in front of him as this confirmed something for Hunter.

'**He's somehow teleporting without using an Ars Magus seal!**' Hunter theorized as his instinct kicked in to tell him to thrust his elbow behind him only for that elbow to get caught as he turned around to see Sora staring right at him in the eyes. He tried to pry his elbow from Sora's hand but Sora simply stared at him, his eyes truly not wanting to fight him as he was so desperately holding back most of his power, hoping the displays of his drive would have been enough to dissuade Hunter from further fighting at this point.

"**Look Hunter… I don't know what happened to you for the past two years… but you got to stop being violent and just listen to me for a second!**" Sora said, his voice breaking a bit as he couldn't help but feel a bit sad looking at Hunter's current condition, the way his body looked so battered, ready to give out yet he was fighting like a desperate animal as Sora could see Hunter make a loud and audible tch sound, annoyed by Sora's constant attempts to get him to stop fighting even though Hunter himself was determined to finish him off.

"**Yeah I will listen to you… After I fucking cave your skull in!**" Hunter shouted like the wild animal he was behaving as, thrusting his other elbow towards Sora's ignition point and activating it with a little bit of Draco's fire he had managed to create without Sora knowing, causing a small explosion to occur as both of them both blown away from each other in the process, leaving Sora groaning on the ground in the process.

As Sora was staggered on the ground, Hunter saw his opportunity and summoned Draco back to his hand as he placed Draco on his hip before swinging upwards with Draco, the blade ejecting out as he swung swiftly. "**RED DAWN!**" Hunter yelled as the blade swung quickly like an uppercut towards Sora's chest. Sora himself realized that he needed to act quick otherwise this next slash might be fatal so he had no choice but to use the Rev Arm instead, transforming the Rev Blade to it while he stood up and using his quick reflexes to have the arm attach to his stump as it formed, allowing him to just barely catch the blade and stopped the attack dead in it's tracks.

Hunter tried to continue the momentum of the strike but found himself stuck in a deadlock as Sora kept the blade on the ground, not letting Hunter continue with his uppercut as Sora simply gave Hunter a stare in the eyes. "**Like I said… just listen to me… unless you want me to knock some sense into you.**" Sora threatened as Hunter could feel Sora's blood lust starting to seep out of his body, warning him that the opponent he was facing was much more than simply a pacifist who could fight.

"**So if you want to do that… THEN COME ON! LET'S GO!**" Sora yelled out as he began to push back the attack, pushing back Hunter's attack much to his surprise as Hunter became even more frustrated. "**Like I said… I don't know who the hell you are!**" Hunter yelled as he went for a headbutt to break the stalemate, both fighters rubbing their foreheads as Hunter bled a little from doing so. As they created distance from each other, Sora couldn't help but notice a small glint appear from Hunter's eye, a glint of cunning that told him to be very wary of something Hunter might try.

He soon entered into a stance that Sora had never seen before, Draco was placed on his hip like how a samurai would sheath their katana for a strike and he was leaning forward, his front leg bending a bit while his back leg was as straight as it could go. From the posture he took, he was getting ready to attack with his metal hand gripping tightly onto Draco's handle. This new stance forced Sora to play a bit defensively as he realized there was no point in trying to hide his drive anymore as he had used it enough times for Hunter to realize that something was up.

'_**I guess it's time to really push myself with this drive.**_' Sora thought as he closed his eyes and briefly focused on the seal that represented his drive. As soon as the image appeared on his mind, Sora blind left white eye suddenly had the seal of his drive ingrained on his iris as Hunter took this as a sign that Sora was no longer going to try and hide what he was doing. '**Good… Do that… Try ****that ****teleporting ****bullshit ****again so I can hit you this time.**' Hunter thought as silence once again greeted the two before a standstill occurred once again.

As Sora moved closer to Hunter, Hunter was discreetly loosening his grip on Draco as he allowed the maw to opened slowly to reduce Sora's chances of noticing what he was trying to do. As soon as Sora got close to point blank, Hunter immediately reacted, releasing Draco after pumping it with energy. "**IGNITE!**" Hunter yelled as the Maw shot out of his hand, Sora barely able to dodge the maw as it zoomed right past him in the process.

As Sora dodged that attack, Hunter had already used the dodge as his chance of attacking as he leaped into the air, making Draco manifest in his hand once again as with the momentum gained from shooting the maw out of his hand, descended on to Sora quickly with the maw ready to smash it right on his head as that was what Hunter wanted, to force Sora to teleport and expose him to another attack in the process.

'_**TCH! That is not all I can do Hunter!**_' Sora thought as he used his drive to speed himself forward and end up right in front of Hunter's attack, stopping the attack's momentum quickly as he grabbed Hunter's wrist and forced the attack to go another direction, exposing Hunter's head for a shot to the face with his metal hand. '_**I GOT YOU!'**_ Sora thought as he swung his fist right towards Hunter's face.

As soon as his fist went soaring into the sky, Sora's eyes flared up for a moment as he suddenly felt a fist pound itself right onto his stomach, making him cough out blood as he looked down to see Hunter delivering a lightning fast punch from his metal hand. It was so fast that Sora barely could register what had happened as his stomach and solar plexuses felt like they were being wrecked while his ribs were breaking apart at the sheer force of the punch Hunter was delivering.

All of this was part of the vision Sora's drive had given him as his eyes immediately diverted towards Hunter's metal fist as he could see Hunter throwing the punch that would immediately incapacitate him if he did not block it. Thus instead of his planned strike towards Hunter's head, Sora immediately pivoted his punch towards Hunter's fist instead, both of their metal fists colliding with each other and thrusting with enough force to crash towards the ground, easily creating a small scale crater in the process as Hunter's eyes widened what had happened.

'**He...Saw that coming?!… Does that mean he is not teleporting all over the place!?**' Hunter thought, his mind become bewildered as he had thought that he had figured out what Sora was doing but now that his punch had just been countered, he cannot help but wonder what else he doesn't know about Sora at this point as this time, he was the one who backed away, doubt starting to seep into his mind as he was starting to become unsure of what was going on and how he should be reacting at this point.

Hunter could feel his blood freeze a little. Now that he was not fighting with such reckless abandon, he could start to clearly see the slow amounts of blood lust that was starting to build with Sora's eyes as Sora had been showing and holding back so much restraint from attacking him in the first place. But with Hunter's every attempt to resist peace talks, Sora himself was starting to resign himself to fight as Sora decided to try for one last time.

"**Look Hunter… I am going to give you one last chance to calm the hell down before I have no choice to give you my all.**" Sora said, grabbing the handle of the Rev arm as he said that while shooting a serious stare towards Hunter's direction. A single rev of the rev arm was enough to discharge some Seithr into the arm as Sora realized if he was going to subdue Hunter, he needed to use the reverse flow function of the Rev System, to use the Seithr that was flowing inside him to empower more of his attacks.

But did he want to do that? Did he want to use something and risk harming both himself and Hunter at the same time due to his inexperience. '_**Please Hunter… Please just settle down and don't force me to go all out.**_' Sora mentally begged as his stare made Hunter move back a bit as Hunter thought about the words Sora had used, contemplating what he was saying before simply shaking his head after processing everything that was said.

"**I'm Sorry… I just don't trust a man ****who looks at me like that****...**" Hunter said, Making Sora sigh as this was the last thing he wanted in the first place, to hear Hunter simply say no to his offer of peace as Sora revved the Rev arm once again as Hunter made manifest into his hands Draco once again as he coughed a little bit, most likely from overexerting himself as Sora felt the needles of the Reverse Flow system prick into his hand as he clicked the brake handle.

"**ENHANCED GEAR!**" The Rev Arm shouted as before Hunter could unleash another attack from Draco, Sora acted first by punching the air with the Rev arm, causing it to rip apart as Hunter had to immediately deploy the saw blade of Draco to protect himself as the air itself struck the blade and made him stumble quite a bit as Sora for the first time, took to the offensive properly as he charged towards Hunter and began to deliver a series of combination punches right towards Hunter's direction, testing Hunter's guard properly as he threw punches aimed for his head and body while mixing it up with kicks from out of nowhere as Hunter used Draco to block most of them, surprised to see that Sora was not flinching from directly striking metal with his bare fist and legs.

Hunter was not going to let Sora simply have all of the offense at this point and began to swing himself. However attacks that were effective before, his fast but calculated swings, were starting to get countered as Sora himself was starting to use more and more of his drive, delving more into the future to continuously see what attacks Hunter was going to be throwing at him and using the speed he has to dodge out of the way. As he did so, Sora could feel a sense of exhaustion kick in as he revved the Rev Arm before clicking the Brake handle and releasing the arm back into it's blade form.

"**ENHANCED GEAR!**" The Rev Blade shouted as before Hunter could get away, Sora grabbed him by his shirt with teeth, swinging with the rev blade right onto Draco itself, causing the blade to blast away as Sora released his grip from Hunter's shirt, causing Hunter to lose balance. As Hunter landed on his ass, He was quick to respond by standing up and away from Sora's knee, aimed towards his chest which would have knocked the wind out of his chest as Sora had to temporarily dismiss his Drive to reduce the fatigue it was causing.

As soon as Hunter saw the lack of a seal on Sora's eye, he immediately acted by charging forward without Draco, delivering punches towards Sora that were starting to land as Sora had to focus on deflecting the blows rather than taking them directly as he raised his foot to dodge Hunter's attempt on stomping on his knee to break it or at least make him lose his balance as Sora noticed that Hunter was starting to lose his breath as well.

'_**Hunter running on empty? Either I have been pushing him harder than I realized or something is very wrong with him.**_' Sora thought as despite seeing the exhaustion, Sora knew better than letting his opponent catch his breath as this simply made him want to end the fight as soon as possible. "**Sorry about this Hunter!**" Sora shouted as he weaved his way through one of Hunter's punches before seeing his chance of punching him right in the ribs.

Closing his eyes for a second, Sora's focus came in for a second as he aimed his fist towards Hunter's stomach, dropping the Rev Blade to the ground as Hunter's eyes were focused on the Rev Blade for that split second he felt a gut wrenching feeling slam right into his stomach. Sora on the other hand did not expect his fist to collide with something metallic as when Hunter flew away for a bit, Sora could notice that the skin on the knuckles of his hand had peeled a bit, causing some bleeding as that was not the result he had expected at all.

'_**Hunter's wearing metal protection underneath that shirt of his?**_' Sora theorized but was soon proven wrong when he got a glimpse of Hunter's shirt while standing up, now having a small punch hole made from Sora's fist and no metal protection underneath that shirt, confusing Sora now as Hunter shook the pain off and saw his chance, running towards Sora as suddenly, Sora felt his shoulders getting grabbed as his eyes could only widen at the oh shit moment coming towards him.

"**HHHRAAGGHH!**" Hunter yelled, in almost a primeval manner as his forehead slammed right into Sora's, dazing him as they both crashed to the ground. Sora felt his world get rocked as Hunter got on top of him and began to throw punches, Sora barely able to raise his arm to block the onslaught as Hunter did not relent with the punches. "**What...You...Finish...Now...**" A voice spoke as that was enough to awaken Sora to something being very wrong as he looked up to see Hunter making manifest Draco in his hand, with the clear intention of using it to finish him off.

Raising his knees quickly, Sora kneed Hunter in the back to get him off, grabbing the Rev blade off the ground and transforming it back to it's arm form as he grabbed a piece of rubble caused by Hunter's previous attack and tossed it right into Hunter's eyes, blinding him with the close range toss as Sora knew he had to subdue Hunter immediately before things got out of hand. "**Sorry Hunter… But this is for your own good.**" Sora said as he revved the Rev Blade with the reverse flow on, biting his lips as the pain was starting to build up.

'_**An Enhanced Finish is not going to be enough… if that's the case...**_' Soon, Sora made a gigantic risk by revving the Rev Blade a second time with the reverse flow on, sending an electric like reaction all throughout his back as Hunter heard the Rev arm shout something out. "**OVERDRIVE DISTORTION GEAR!**" The Rev System shouted as Sora's hand started to bleed hard as he clicked the rev handle to activate the system.

"**OVERDRIVE DISTORTION FINISH!**" The system shouted as Hunter knew he had to block the next attack as that would be his opening to land a finishing blow on Sora. Sora soon coiled his back as the energy began to build up on his arm, charging up to dangerous levels of Seithr that would immediately make a person or animal go berserk as Hunter couldn't believe what he was seeing as he quickly formed a flame barrier to protect himself from the next attack.

"_**DEN!**_" Sora shouted as he uncoiled, thrusting the Rev Arm right towards Hunter's flame barrier as he immediately felt the impact of the blow strike him hard, his arm immediately bleeding from the sheer force of the attack. '**Right! Now's...**' As Hunter got himself ready to counter attack, he immediately realized that Sora was already coiling back for another attack, realizing that he needed to guard for much longer than he had expected.

"_**RI!**_" Sora shouted as his normal fist right into the flame barrier, a gust of Seithr blowing through said fist as Hunter felt his feet lose their traction on the ground as Sora aggressively punched both him and himself right into the air, both of them taking to the air as Sora had coiled his metal arm for another punch while energy began to build up on his left feet. All Hunter could do at this point was simply keep his flame barrier up and hope that it would be able to withstand what happens next.

"_**SO!**_" As Sora delivered the final blow, a punch/kick combo with the metal fist first smashing the flame barrier out completely as Hunter formed a second flame barrier to shield himself desperately for the second attack before things got even worse. The second barrier came just in time as it wasn't enough to stop the attack but it was enough to prevent further damage as both him and Sora crashed towards the ground, creating a massive cloud of rubble and dust in the process as soon both fighters were left on the ground.

Sora soon stumbled to his feet, the attack he had unleashed had taken more of his energy than he had expected. The combination of using the reverse flow and a distortion drive at the same time winded him out much more than normal as he felt his legs shake like jello for a little bit as he soon collapsed to his ass and continued to pant hard. "_**Jesus Christ… what is this exhaustion am I feeling?..**_" Sora said in Japanese as his eyes focused on Hunter's direction, to make sure he didn't lose sight of where Hunter was.

"_**God…**__** I hope I didn't overdo it in my attempt to subdue Hunter...**_" Sora thought as Hunter slowly stirred from the ground, gasping for air as he quickly stood up on his feet, adrenaline rushing through his body to keep him awake despite the severity of the attack which was not much. "**What… You stopping now?.. Huh?!**" Hunter said as Sora himself slowly tensed himself back to a stance, his body feeling the effects of the distortion as he couldn't help but worry if he was in any shape to continue fighting in the first place.

"**Come on… I can do this all day!**" Hunter yelled, Sora tensing even more as he was not sure what was going to happen next. Was Hunter going to lunge for him with Draco and try to slice him to bits? Was he going to have to use deadly force at this point to subdue him? All these questions and more lingered in Sora's mind as he simply remained tense while Hunter charged towards him, Draco in hand. However that soon changed when he suddenly noticed Hunter's facial expression change from one of anger into one of sudden pain and anguish.

"**H-HUNTER!?**" Sora yelled, immediately releasing stance and running towards Hunter as he caught him while he was falling down to the ground as he clutched his chest in pain. "**AAAHHGGHH...**" Hunter moaned as Sora couldn't help but look even more confused as to what was going on. '_**Is he...suffering a heart attack right now!?**_' Sora thought as his instincts kicked in at that moment. No longer was he focused on trying to fend of Hunter but more on trying to save him from what was a heart attack.

'_**Shit! I don't have any aspirin to try and relax this heart attack and making a phone call to the hospital is also not a good idea if he's being this secretive… FUCK!**_' Sora thought as he decided that he needed to at least lie Hunter down on the ground and try to stabilize him on the ground instead of his lap as thankfully, the hard surface of the ground proved effective enough to at least act as a makeshift table as Sora began to try and apply compression to the problem.

'_**Shit! I need to be careful with how much...**_' Before Sora could think any further of what he could do to save Hunter. A huge gust of wind swept him off his feet, sending him flying towards a pole and bending it with his body. A pain echoed throughout his spine as he groaned in extreme pain for what the wind caused as Sora couldn't help but immediately enter into a battle stance once again against an unknown adversary

"**WHO'S THERE!**" Sora shouted as he noticed a black body of what appeared to be shadows come out and swallow Hunter as Sora immediately ran towards his direction to try and save him, making a dive for him but was too slow as the shadows fully consumed Hunter in the process as he slammed his fist to the ground in frustration by what was going on as he stood up. "**COME ON OUT! WHERE ARE YOU RIGHT NOW!?**" Sora thought, theorizing that Hunter was currently in the hands of the person who conjured up and swallowed him up with the shadows.

"**My my… you speak with the eloquence of a normal dog… I might have found someone who is even more of a dog than the normal dog.**" A voice spoke as Sora couldn't help but look around in confusion. "**Eloquence of…. WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!**" Sora shouted, ignoring the insult tossed his way as soon in front of him, a gothic lolita girl appeared in front of him. To Sora, this little girl appearing out of nowhere was someone he did not know at all, but to the rest of us, we simply know her as Rachel Alucard as a conversation soon began between each other.

* * *

Rachel: **My, demanding such things without even bothering to ask them in a polite way… I do not blame you however. We are meeting each other for the first time.**

Sora: **Well yeah… So can you answer the question before I throw the next punch at your face? I don't discriminate against little girls and I won't hesistate to send you packing back to mommy you stuck up… lady?**

Rachel: **Hmph! My name is simply Rachel Alucard...Boy. And just so you know, I am much older than even you are so it will do you good to address me in a much more polite tone than the one you are using.**

Sora: **Well then… I would like to believe you are older… if you do not look like a little girl but hey. You have found the elixir of life and now have eternal youth. That's great. You want to know what I think? I don't care how old you are. All I care is that you have my friend Hunter in your custody and I want him back. Now we can make this easy Rachel and you can hand him back to me… or we can skip the talking and get to fighting… unless you need your butler to fight for you.**

Rachel:**… As much as I would like to be angered by such slanderous words coming out of your mouth. I have more pressing matters to attend to right now. Like taking care of Hunter Long. The man you have injured yourself.**

* * *

"**OH really now? And what's going to stop me from pursuing you any further?**" Sora said, his feet moving forward as Rachel simply took a deep breath as Sora began to run, fist coiled in for a punch as Rachel knew she had to say a few words to subdue the man before he got any more violent. "**Makoto Nanaya knows that you are in Kagutsuchi right now and you should be spending your time to find her instead of fighting me.**" Those words spoken by Rachel immediately made Sora stop his attack in his tracks, his fist slowly coiling back to a normal fist as Rachel used that as her chance to escape, disappearing through a cloud of darkness as rose petals struck him in the face.

"**W-WAIT DAMMIT!**" Sora yelled, snapping out of what Rachel had said as he couldn't believe he allowed what she had said to cause him to be distracted as he grabbed the back of his head in frustration over a basic mistake he made. "_**FUCK!**_" Sora yelled, realizing he had allowed Hunter to get kidnapped by the girl called Rachel as frustration build up within Sora at how he allowed the words of a Gothic Lolita girl to get the better of him at the end of the day.

'_**Even if her words are true… SHIT!**_" Sora yelled as all he simply did was just kick the pole his body had crashed into. His feet not feeling any pain as the pole itself was shaking more than Sora's own foot kicking the pole several times. The frustration… disappointment and confusion he felt deep inside simply left him with more questions than answers which was not what he had wanted… as something was starting to become very clear to him at this point…

* * *

**...He had stumbled onto a situation that he does not know about…**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING IN THIS FINE DAY!? I Have been doing well myself as I have been making sure to take a break or as much as I can before the inevitable university work begins once again. In order to relax, I have been planning to play Monster Hunter World Iceborne ever since it came out on PC and now that I have this time, I might as well play it while I can. I have been balancing my gaming life with the writing life so don't worry, you all will get your usual chapters as usual.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TO SORA MINAKAZE!? WHAT DOES RACHEL ALUCARD HAVE PLANNED FOR HUNTER LONG!? HOW DOES SORA REACT TO THE NEWS THAT RACHEL GAVE HIM!? AND WHAT WILL BE SORA'S DECISION IN THIS WORLD OF MADNESS THE WORLD HAS TOSSED HIM IN! Well now, read on if you want to find out more.**


	21. Canon 20: Follow Your Heart

(A new Canon has arrived. Let us see where the path now leads for Sora Minakaze and those who have been roped into this path.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 20

In the streets of Kagutsuchi, far from the location he had just waged a battle against Hunter from, Sora couldn't help but look towards the slowly changing sky as the cig in his hand slowly burned away from his hand. His thoughts were allowed to be free for that moment as he didn't know how he should progress with what has happened to him currently. '_**First it's Jin and Tsubaki not knowing who I am... to Hunter not knowing who I am and trying to kill me... The next I know, Noel will not know who I am and run away from me and Makoto... I don't want to think about that possibility.**_' Sora thought as he crushed the cigarette with his bare hand, allowing the pain to faintly linger in his hand as he soon tossed the crushed cigarette to the ground.

"_**God I need a seat right now...**_" Sora mumbled to himself as he took a seat right on a nearby bench as he was still near the park area of the Hierarchical city of Kagutsuchi, the park being rather expansive which Sora would have not mind if it were not for the fact that right now he just wanted to stare at a plain color. Thus in order to get what he wants, he simply laid himself on the ground, face staring into the sky as he sighed deeply into the sky, wondering what his next move should be.

"**Excuse me young man. May I sit right next to you right now?**" A voice spoke as Sora tilted his head back to ground level to see who was speaking to him. It was an old man but he was rather different. Unlike old men his age, this old man had a rather stylish aquamarine suit with gold trim throughout and had long white hair that had a pink bow tied at near the end as the old man softly smiled at him, making Sora scratch his head a little.

"**If you insist...**" Sora mumbled, giving the old man space to sit down as he simply smiled as the two focused their gaze right into the flower field that was right in front of him however the old man could notice that the young man next to him was not focusing on the flowers. "**You know... if you stare at the flowers with the intensity you are giving them, you risk making them wilt.**" The old man said as Sora couldn't help but scratch his head at that, wondering what could that mean.

"**It simply means that you must cool down right now. Your body is acting faster than your mind can think.**" The old man continued as Sora couldn't help but nod his head at understanding that before looking at the old man again. "**And you sure like butting in to other people's business huh...**" Sora said as the old man simply laughed. "**It might be just old age... or from experience, but you have the same eyes I once had when I was younger. When I was rash and eager to fight anything in sight. I just wanted to say something that's all.**" The old man explained as Sora looked at top to bottom at this man.

"**And you like taking walks and talking with random strangers? You look like the type to be busy with something at this time like taking care of a store or a young lady?**" Sora said as the old man couldn't help but laugh at that. "**When you say it like that, I cannot help but agree. Why yes, I am supposed to return to where my lady waits for me with the tea she had requested me to acquire, but I cannot help but start thinking about things while I do these tasks.**" The old man said as Sora couldn't help but nod his head at that.

"**I guess when you put it that way. it's the things that we often wonder about the most that makes us think the most...**" Sora mumbled as the old man simply smiled. "**So what is lingering in your mind if I can be kind to ask. I can assure you that I am just curious about your current predicament and don't wish commit anything that would anger you.**" The old man asked, having warmed Sora enough to make him want to talk about his current predicament as Sora simply figured that there was no harm in letting what was essentially a senile old man listen to him ramble for a bit.

* * *

Sora: **Well... I just have been having a bad day that's all. My friends either forgot who I am or want me dead or both... and I cannot help but feel like I am in a bit of an in pass right now.**

Old man: **An i****n pass? Now what do you mean by that?**

Sora:** I mean...I know I should be moving forward and try to press on through the bullshit. But I don't know how I should be doing that. Should I simply just focus on what's in front of me and deal with that as it goes? Or should I take each problem one by one, thinking as I go.**

Old man: **Have you tried both options before you started thinking about this?**

Sora: **Yes... Yes I have. But both have lead me to not reaching a solution. Walking in blind has gotten me into trouble so much in my life so for this problem, I tried to think reasonably and reason with the people around me... and even then that doesn't work as people just want me dead for some reason.**

Old Man: **Hmmm...it seems you really have stumbled upon a predicament indeed young man...**

* * *

"**Predicament is an understatement... it's more of a rock and a hard place for me...**" Sora complained, placing his head on his knees in frustrations, rubbing his forehead at the misfortune that had been directed at him. "**But as one man would say, hardships are the world's way of testing one way of life against each other.**" The old man explained as Sora couldn't help but look at the old man with a face that simply screamed, "**Oh really now old man... if that's the case, please explain to me what you mean by that?**" as the old man couldn't help but laugh as he cleared his throat for his explanation.

"**If life was not filled with challenges, then we would not grow as individuals. If you are not being challenged constantly in life, then how will you know if you are truly growing and not stagnating.**" The old man explained as Sora couldn't help but scratch his head at that. "**Are you telling me gods throw challenges at us because they like to torture us that way?**" Sora asked as the old man simply smiled and nodded his head at that.

"**If that is the case, the gods are being fucking dicks about the way they choose to torture me right now ****and I deserve at least some compensation after all the bullshit they put me through****.**" Sora complained as for some reason, talking to this old man has somehow helped him to clear his mind a bit to what was stressing him before. "**If that is the case, all you can do is simply endure what has been given to your way and fight your way back to a chance in life.**" The old man explained as Sora simply nodded his head at that.

"**You know what... you're right about that old man. I should probably just endure and fight my way through this bullshit that the gods have decided I deserve.**" Sora said as he stood up and stretched a little, revealing to the old man his stump. "**In any other case... thanks for the pep talk old man. I really needed that right now.**" Sora said as he simply bowed in respect before he started walking away as the old man couldn't help but smirk at that.

"**Say young one. You're not going to ask this old man for his name just in case we do meet again?**" The old man asked as Sora simply turned his head towards him, tilting it a bit before nodding. "**Sure. what's your name old man?**" Sora asked bluntly as the old man simply chuckled a bit before giving his answer. "**The name's Valkenhayn R Hellsing though Valkenhayn would suffice.**" Valkenhayn said as Sora couldn't help but place his finger on his chin, realizing why that name sounded familiar.

"**You're one of the six heroes aren't you?**" Sora said, realizing why the name now sounded so familiar as Valkenhayn simply smiled, amazed at how the man could simply speak to him in a calm manner when most would freak out in some manner or demand some respect hearing his name. "**And I am just surprised you are showing some restraint. Are you actually nervous speaking to me now that you know who I am?**" Valkenhayn questioned as Sora simply tilted his head.

"**Why should I? You are just a normal person like everyone else. You may be a famous person but that doesn't mean that you ****get my respect, you have to earn that like everyone else in life. ****In any other case, I need to go right now Valkenhayn. There is something only I can do right now.**" Sora said as he simply bowed a bit before leaving Valkenhayn to ponder on the words that Sora had said as Valkenhayn sat back on his seat, amused by the answer given to him.

"**How long have you been listening old friend?**" Valkenhayn questioned as out stepped from the shadows a strange sight for most normal people. It was a fully grown cat standing on two of it's legs, had twin tails and wearing an orange cat hoodie with black trim that came with large over sized paws. On this cat's back was a pair of two blades sheathed with one singular red sheath and strapped to his body with a brown strap.

"**Just long enough to know that you told him your name.**" The cat beastkin replied as he showed his face, revealing a belt eye patch over his eye as Valkenhayn chuckled. "**I did not take you for the eavesdropping type Jubei. You could have joined the conversation if you wanted to old friend.**" Valkenhayn replied as Jubei simply scratched his head. "**It's alright. I wanted to see him from a distance to see if he really has been worth the fuzz that your missus has been making him out to be.**" Jubei replied as Valkenhayn turned his head towards him.

"**And what is your opinion on the boy then?**" Valkenhayn asked as Jubei simply pawed his head. "**He already reminds me way too much of my former disciple... it's kind of like looking at some mirror... yet at the same time he's different enough that I can't say he's an exact copy. Look I know I am not being direct but that guy's too hard to read from just a distance.**" Jubei said, shaking his head several times as he looked at Valkenhayn in the eyes.

"**And what about you? What do you think about the kid after having a heartfelt conversation with him?**" Jubei asked, turning the question Valkenhayn had asked back at him as Valkenhayn simply laughed. "**Well... If I can be frank. While the boy lacks delicacy and tact and is rude to his seniors. At least he's not a vulgar foul mouthed individual unlike a certain other white haired individual I know off...**" Valkenhayn replied, his tone becoming low at the end as Jubei scratched his head.

"**You are still mad with Ragna for the way he treats the rabbit?**" Jubei questioned as Valkenhayn's hand accidentally broke a piece of the bench when he applied too much force into it. "**Yes... because regardless of who he thinks he is. The way he treats the mistress is simply appalling and deserves a stern correcting of such appalling behavior.**" Valkenhayn replied as his teeth grinded a bit with each word that come out of his mouth, making Jubei realize that he needed to refocus their conversation before things change.

"**Well...regardless of personality... do you think he's going to be alright?**" Jubei asked as Valkenhayn realized why Jubei was changing the conversation as he cleared his throat a little. "**I do not have to see him fight to know that he will be alright. Even if he's missing an arm, he's at least not missing some heart.**" Valkenhayn said as Jubei looked back at the direction that Sora was running towards, wondering if Valkenhayn's words were true.

As Jubei and Valkenhayn pondered, Sora himself continued to run ahead, running like he had never before as his eyes focused on what was in front of him while his mind was thinking about the path that he had to take in order to ensure that he lived to figure out the mystery of who is trying to kill him while making sure Makoto was safe. '_**That's all I can do at this point. All I can do for myself... for the people around me... Is to simply keep looking forward and not let anything hold me back from my goal.**_'

* * *

**...And thus, with that simple goal in his mind, Regardless of where he ended up next, Sora simply continued to run on forward...**

* * *

As Sora tried to find Makoto, Makoto herself was quite busy at that moment. Her day has been getting rather hectic from going to meet Tager only to meet with Hunter who she thought was dead this entire time and finding out that Sora has life needing medication that Hunter needs in order to live, to now trying to find her friend Noel in the mess as she held her head a bit. "_**God... this whole thing is starting to get out of hand...**_" Makoto thought as she took a seat on the ground to recollect her thoughts.

To think, all of this started when she was given that task by her former superior Hazama to head to the ruins of Ibukido and find out what was going there only to be brought to an alternative timeline where Hunter was her lover and Noel did not exist. Then from that same timeline, she had her mind raped by the masked freak and would have been a goner if it wasn't for the fact that the rapist brought back memories of her boyfriend which she didn't even knew existed until that point.

And now here she was, in Kagustuchi trying to not only find her missing boyfriend, but also deal with the fact that one of her best friends is trying to kill her other best friend and she doesn't even know the reason why and was with a woman famed for her masochistic tendencies. And now she just found out that Hunter Long, the person who was supposedly dead from the Ikaruga war is alive and now depending on life saving medication that her missing boyfriend had supposedly stolen from the red devil himself and now she needs to find Sora and stop a murder from happening at the same time.

"_**I just need to do all of that before...**_" Before Makoto could even finish her sentence, she felt a massive gust of wind blow her down to her ass, making her moan in pain as she looked around to see who had made her fall down. "**My My, to think you would fall down with such indignity.**" Rachel Alucard's voice boomed as this got Makoto to look around quickly, realizing that Rachel Alucard was somewhere in the area until she looked at the sky and couldn't help but gawk at what she was seeing.

It was Rachel herself, descending down from the heavens holding onto a umbrella as she gracefully touched the ground with the tip of her feet. Makoto at this point should have been used to the appearance of the Gothic Lolita but if she kept doing weird stuff like this, then she could simply just throw getting used to things out of the window completely. "**I...I see that you have picked up the ability to fly... when do you think I can start doing that myself?**" Makoto questioned as Rachel simply chuckled hearing that.

"**Well now, if you would like to learn how to fly, please show to me your aptitude for wind magic then.**" Rachel questioned as Makoto simply looked at her with confusion in her eyes. "**Oh...I don't think you can cast magic now... very well, Wind Ars Magus will have the same effect so you can demonstrate to me that instead.**" Rachel said as Makoto simply curled herself into a ball hearing what Rachel said in depression.

'_**Looks like you are going to have to wait for that hoverpack or jetpack technology in the future... Makoto Nanaya...**_' Makoto thought in a depressed manner as Rachel simply cleared her throat to bring the squirrel beastkin back to reality as Makoto pushed away her crushed dream to fly in order to learn more about what brought Rachel here to talk to her in the first place. "**So...Rachel, what brings you here to speak with good old me again?**" Makoto questioned as she couldn't help but feel that Rachel was starting to have a growing interest on her for some unexplained reason.

"**Well... I have some good news...and bad news...**" Rachel said as that immediately got Makoto's attention as she sat herself down in a proper position, her face looking towards Rachel as she took a deep breath once more to focus. "**Right... tell me then Rachel... good news first please then the bad news. I would rather have some good in my life right now rather than pile up the horrible on top of each other as I am suffering through right now**." Makoto said as she prepared herself to hear what news Rachel was going to give her.

"**Firstly... I have managed to find Sora Minakaze for you... he's currently in Kagutsuchi as we speak**." Rachel said as Makoto immediately felt a sigh of relief flow into her as she took a deep breath of relief. Finally, somehow.. someway... she has finally managed to find Sora. Even if someone else had to find him for her... but at least she knows that her boyfriend is safe right now. "**Can...Can you give me a moment please... I just need to process this for a second...**" Makoto said as she closed her eyes, happily processing what she was hearing.

'_**Finally... it took forgetting and remembering that you exist... but we finally get to meet after so long Sora.**_' Makoto thought as she opened her eyes happily back at Rachel Alucard. "**Right... tell me the bad news now...please.**" Makoto asked as she got herself ready to hear the bad news. How it was most likely the world was trying to kill Sora right now. "**The world is trying to kill Sora Minakaze right now.**" Rachel said as Makoto couldn't help but wince at that, unable to believe that her thoughts predicted the exact lines Rachel would use at that moment.

"**So... Is the world trying to kill him via this phenomena intervention thingy you mentioned to me before?**" Makoto asked as Rachel simply sighed and nodded. "**Well... that and Mr Minakaze has made it difficult on himself by constantly getting himself into trouble. As we speak right now, the NOL are currently looking for a white haired individual who is missing an arm who stole an NOL police bike and was last seen near the park.**" Rachel said as Makoto couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"**God... I cannot believe you got all of that from just spotting him...**" Makoto said as Rachel simply shook her head. "**Oh no. I do not have the time to follow such a charlatan. I simply had my butler do that for me.**" Rachel explained as Makoto could only look at her with a bit of amazement. Butlers... one of the things rich people have that a poor person like her would never imagine having. Though if it was her, she would prefer a hot maid instead.

"**Wait a minute...if your butler has been following Sora this whole time... how can you be so sure it's him in the first place?**" Makoto asked as Rachel simply sighed. "**Because I talked with the man myself to confirm it. I must have caught him in a bad time because he was fighting against Mr Long and was trying to save him but I guess the appearance of a savior was too abrupt for his liking and thus he started talking to me like a rabid dog. The shame really.**" Rachel said as Makoto's jaw was simply left gaping at that statement.

'_**Maybe the reason why he was being hostile to you was because you freaking appeared out of nowhere and fucking kidnapped a friend he was trying to save!**_' Makoto thought aggressively as she couldn't believe what Rachel had done. She wanted to go on a further tirade but knew that in hindsight, Rachel was probably not raised to handle social interaction as well as she would have liked. "**In...In any other case... Hunter's not dying and Sora's alive...right?**" Makoto questioned as she waited for Rachel's response to her question.

"**Well... you are correct to say that. As we speak right now, my butler has confirmed to me that Mr Minakaze is currently running in a random direction trying to find you right now. I do not know where he is heading to right now so I would recommend right now that you go and find him as soon as possible.**" Rachel explained as Makoto's eyes blinked for a bit before she took a deep breath, processing the information as quickly as possible as she finally stood up on her feet.

"**Then I should probably try to find him before I meet up with Noellie later tonight. I just hope that he has not run away too far to find me... and that Noel will be fine.**" Makoto explained as Rachel smiled. "**Then I should take my leave now and care for Mr Long's health. I propose that you take your time to breathe first before acting any further. After all... we don't know what the gods of this world have planned for Mr Minakaze.**" Rachel said before letting herself get engulfed in a wave of black shadows as Makoto sighed before looking for a place to sit as she realized that she needed to take a break at that moment.

"_**You just got to find ways to make my life more difficult for me huh Sora...**_" Makoto said with a small smile on her face as her hand reached for the necklace on her neck and stroked it affectionately. While normally she should be angry that Sora was causing trouble for everyone...again. She couldn't help but smile at the fact that Sora was still Sora in a way. Even if he had changed in some ways, there were still some things about him that would take much longer to change.

"_**I wonder... what will you say when we meet again? Will you question if I remember who you are? Or will you keep quiet and try to treat me like a stranger.**_" Makoto wondered out loud loudly to herself as it's because of these moments that she's grateful she learned how to speak Japanese in the first place as if she spoke English at that moment, she would have probably not only brought attention to herself but also made herself look like an idiot in the process.

'_**I need to stop talking out loud to myself like an idiot in public...**_' Makoto thought as she finally found a place to rest, lying her back on the wall of a bridge as while she agreed that it sounded like an idiot speaking out loud. She cannot help but feel like she needed to voice out her feelings as she reached out for the flask and pulled it out, debating about drinking as a toast to the good news she has heard so far. '_**Maybe later Makoto... after you find Sora.**_' Makoto thought as she kept her flask once more.

"_**Now... where do I go to find Sora right now?**_" Makoto said to herself as she began to wonder where she should go at this point. Does she go to where Sora was at last time and try to piece together his next destination from there? Or does she pick a random location and start searching from there. As long as she returned back to where she had promised she would meet Noel with later that night, she still had some time to search for Sora.

"**Excuse me there lady. I have a simple question to ask you right now.**" A voice called out as Makoto immediately turned her head around wondering who could that be. The color on her face then briefly left her as she soon realized who it was she was talking to as she couldn't help but freeze a bit, realizing who on earth had just called oiut for her name. '_**Oh shit... of all the people I know the NOL has in their arsenal... it had to be you of all people.**_' Makoto thought as she stared right at the person in the face.

This person had jet black long hair tied to two tails with a red crimson hair ornament that resembled horns. The person wore a tight red NOL Dress with a cream coat that had a long collar extending up to her ears and exposing the middle of her chest, symbolizing that she came from the Zeroth squadron, the NOL's wings of justice as the woman noticed that Makoto was staring at her with a bit of fear in her eyes as she leaned in closer, her own light blue eyes staring right at Makoto's hazel's eyes.

"**My, don't you think it's rather rude that you are just staring at me like an idiot?**" The woman replied as Makoto couldn't help but curse her luck that she was currently face to face with the captain and considered head of the Zero Squadron, Meifang LapisLazuli herself as she didn't know how to feel about her current predicament at that moment. '_**Oh shit... she's the one that those guards mentioned was with Tsubaki when she arrived at Kagutsuchi.**_' Makoto thought as she quickly recomposed herself at that moment, laughing nervously.

"**Oh I'm Sorry about that. I was just amazed by your beauty that's all.**" Makoto said, trying to shake off the bad feeling she was feeling at that moment as she didn't know how to react at that moment. Here she was, face to face with one of the most dangerous people she knows in the NOL and she doesn't know how this woman was going to react at that moment. "**Oh really now. That is a flattering comment to hear.**" Meifang replied as Makoto laughed nervously.

"**So... what is the question that you have in mind... Uhhh**" Makoto said, trying to get Meifang to say her name to start the conversation. "**Meifang LapisLazuli of the Zero Squadron.**" Meifang replied, prompting Makoto to nod her head and gesture for Meifang to continue and ask her question as Meifang simply smiled. "**Well... I just wanted to ask you if you are Makoto Nanaya, the recently reported traitor of the NOL who has NOL secrets with her**." Meifang said as that made Makoto sweat even more as she chuckled nervously.

* * *

Makoto: **Me? Makoto Nanaya? What makes you say that huh?**

Meifang: **Well.. according to intelligence, Makoto Nanaya's greatest trait is that she is a squirrel beastkin.**

Makoto:** Oh! Hehehe, well... to be fair, there is a lot of squirrel beastkins and not just me. So maybe you can be more specific with her appearance ****so that I can help you better.**

Meifang: **Well... she has brown hair... hazel eyes, and has a penchant for wearing orange clothing... just like you are.**

Makoto:** ! Oh don't be silly. I just happen to look like the person you're describing that's all. She went that way.**

* * *

'_**Oh what are you doing Makoto. If your lie doesn't work out, Meifang is going to kill you!**_' Makoto thought as Meifang looked at the direction that she had pointed before Meifang simply smiled. "**Thank you for directing me to the right way civilian. Now if you would excuse me.**" Meifang said as she walked right past Makoto, making her sigh very slowly as Makoto took one step before her senses to dodge kicked in, dodging out of the way of a suddenly and powerful kick thrown her way as the ground that was in front of her shattered when Meifang's feet touched it to recover.

"**Do you really think of me as an idiot Makoto Nanaya? Because if you do... I cannot help but feel offended that you even got into intelligence in the first place.**" Meifang replied, Makoto realizing her bluff had just backfired as she sighed. "**Okay look... to be fair that was more a shot in the dark than an actual plan so... yeah I was hoping you were gullable enough to fall for that.**" Makoto said, realizing her bluff had failed as Meifang couldn't help but smirk at that.

"**Oh I am going to enjoy making you scream and beg for your life.**" Meifang said, cracking her fists as Makoto immediately pulled out her tonfas, now able to feel Meifang's killing intent leaking out of her as Makoto herself didn't know what she was going to do. '_**If the rumors about her abilities are true... It might actually be better to find a way out of here than fight her in the first place.**_' Makoto thought as Makoto couldn't help that she had stumbled onto something horrible...

* * *

**...and that something was now standing in her way...**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW ARE YOU ALL ARE DOING!? I have been doing fine myself. I hope you all are taking care of yourselves especially with the whole Novel Corona Virus out in the world right now. At least we can't infected through the internet. The day that happens, the world is truly doomed but right now. Make sure to take care of yourselves and if you are feeling ill, please do stay at home. You are not going to do anybody favours if you get everyone else sick as well. If you do feel sick and you need to go out, try to stay out as little time as possible to minimize your contact with people. This has been your public service announcement for the growing Corona Virus.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TO MAKOTO NANAYA!? CAN SHE SURVIVE AN ENCOUNTER WITH THE CAPTAIN OF THE ZERO SQUADRON HERSELF MEIFANG LAPISLAZULI!? AND JUST WHAT WILL HAPPEN FROM THIS POINT FORWARD TO NOT ONLY JUST MAKOTO NANAYA BUT ALSO SORA MINAKAZE!? Well... the only way we can find the answer to that question is to keep on reading and seeing to the very end the path that has been set for these two.**


	22. Canon 21: Masochistic Power

(A New CANON Has arrived! Let us see what Makoto can do against a woman like Meifang LapisLazuli.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 21

Previously on Canon Distortion..

When we last left off, Sora Minakaze was dealing with complicated feelings on how he should progress on what has happened to him. Thanks to advice given by Valkenhayn R Hellsing, one of the Six Heroes of the Dark War, Sora ran towards his next goal. As Sora did this however, Makoto Nanaya was dealing with her own issues until she met with Melfang LapisLazuli, the captain of the Zero Squadron and one who is not to be messed with. Now forced to pick a fight against this dangerous woman, Makoto knew that she had to fight for her survival in order to keep living...

And Now, the continuation of Canon Distortion

* * *

'_**How in the shit did I somehow get myself in this situation!?**_' Makoto thought as she got into stance. Here she was, face to face against Meifang LapisLazuli, The famed captain of the Zero Squadron who brutalized the battles she was involved in. If the worst came to be, she was to be pitted against the Mad Dog of Sector Seven in a final desperate bid to crush the dog himself. And now, this captain was to be her opponent as Meifang could simply look at Makoto and knew she was being cautious.

'_**Calm down Makoto, You can't lose yourself right now.**_' Makoto thought as she began to tense up her guard, raising her tonfas in a guarding stance to ensure that she was protected from any blows that might be fatal. Now normally she wouldn't worry about these small details as a beastkin's reflexes are sharper than a normal person's but with a woman with as fearsome as Meifang's reputation, Makoto couldn't take any chances as immediately without warning, Makoto staggered back, her fists trembling and the tonfas strapped to her arms ringing as Makoto wanted to scream at that moment but couldn't.

"**Now Now… Why are you so tense? Don't tell me that you are actually that nervous facing me?**" Meifang said as she loosened her guard a bit, shaking her hands in the process to relax herself as Makoto couldn't help but feel that the words she had spoken were actually insults hurled her way as she frown briefly. '_**This bitch… is she trying to anger me?**_' Makoto wondered as Meifang approached her only to get a jab right at her temple, a punch that Makoto would have hold back but had thrown a bit stronger than normal.

"**Well to be fair, I have never had the chance to experience the Meifang LapisLazuli Experience yet. So I cannot help be nervous.**" Makoto said, making sure to throw some shade at Meifang's direction as Makoto couldn't help but notice that Meifang herself did not even look fazed by the attack that had been thrown at her way. "**Oh my… what a weak jab that was. That was barely able to cause me to feel a tinge of pain. Are you even trying at this point?**" Meifang said, tapping her forehead at the spot Makoto had struck, making Makoto feel a bit of anger as she was simply grinning at Makoto's cute attempt at causing harm towards her.

"**OH MY! I am sorry! Why don't you just stand still and let me give you a knuckle sandwich!**" Makoto yelled as she charged up a punch and unleashed her iconic Impact at max level, slamming it right at Meifang's stomach. When she did so, Meifang stumbled a bit, looking a bit staggered. '_**Yeah! You like that huh… You masochistic…**_' before Makoto could even finish her thought process, Meifang simply brushed the spot where Makoto had landed her punch, causing immediate surprise as Meifang didn't even look fazed by the blow she took

'_**No way… she took that… without even blocking or conjuring a barrier to reduce the impact? Just what...**_' Before Makoto could even finish her train of thought, Meifang couldn't help but take it as her chance to try and push Makoto Nanaya to her brink, to see if she's really worth all of the fuss that her bounty was giving her. "**My My, that was such a hit… Now, My turn.**" Meifang said as Makoto did not know what to expect next.

Then...without warning, even with her own beastkin eyes, she suddenly found herself embedded onto a wall, coughing out a bit of blood in the process as her eyes widened at the pain she was suddenly forced to feel. As Makoto remained stuck on the wall, Meifang couldn't help but yawn as the blow she delivered Makoto, which would have caused a person's knuckles to bleed, didn't even cause her skin to peel as she wondered if the bounty was even worth it in the first place.

'**At this rate, I won't be able to get a good gauge of her strength. And from what I heard from the green man, She may actually be useful for my plans in the future.**' Meifang thought as she knew, she needed to draw out more of Makoto's power, even if it meant hurling insults her way. "**Is that really all? So much hot shit from a rodent for that? Hmph, I guess even Miss Yayoi's wrong about you at the end of the day.**" Meifang said as Makoto's ears couldn't help but twitch at that as she peeled herself off the wall, stumbling onto her feet as Makoto gave her a direct stare.

"**Oh? You didn't know? Of course not, you would have never heard it from her since your betrayal only came out recently.**" Meifang said as she began to walk around, circling Makoto as her eyes focused right at Meifang. "**She said that you were one of the best athletes back at the Academy and fought in the front lines in the Black Rebellion… yet when I fight you now, all I see is a rodent pretending her fists are strong.**" Meifang taunted as Makoto could feel anger flow into her head as she tensed her fists even more at the insults being hurled at her direction.

As Makoto's fists tensed, her muscles loosened as anger was starting to flow into her. "**Oh.. Fine… if you want to play so badly, then let's play.**" Makoto said as she punched her fists a bit before cracking them. "**Just allow me to introduce to two people you should know. Mr Fist… and Mrs Fist.**" Makoto soon gave Meifang a death stare as she flicked her wrists, assuming her punching posture once more as Meifang could tell that she had managed to strike a nerve with the squirrel beastkin, biting her lips at the anger being directed at her way.

"**Oh? Then come at me? Let's see if you can get me motivated then.**" Meifang said, finally assuming a stance as she tensed her fists, her eyes laser focused on what Makoto was going to do next. A few moments passed by as none of the women made their first move until Makoto did so, using her feet to spring forward in an explosive manner as she dashed right for Meifang, her fists ready to deliver a powerful series of punches that would have staggered a person normally.

Meifang however was not fazed by what was being delivered in her way, instead allowing some blows to slip past her guard, allowing herself to get hit to keep gauging Makoto's strength as the pain she was feeling with each shot that landed was starting to grow. And she didn't even try to hide the fact that she was in pain as Makoto couldn't help but push on with her assault. "**Oh!? Then why don't you take this!**" Makoto yelled she broke Meifang's guard with pure force before delivering a punch to Meifang's face, making her stagger back as Meifang spat out the blood that came from her mouth.

Instead of becoming angry at the pain or struggling to deal with it, Meifang couldn't help but smile at what was being thrown her way as she looked back at Makoto with a glee in her eyes. "**Yes! That's it! Show me more!**" Meifang said as Makoto simply screamed, not willing to relent the offensive, her teeth gritting as she realized that Meifang was purposely taking most of her blows while redirecting others, as if saying that she could end Makoto anytime she wished.

'_**This bitch is taking everything I am giving her! Let's see if she is going to keep grinning after this!**_' Makoto thought as she delivered a quick roundhouse kick to cause Meifang to stagger, creating a bit of distance between her and Makoto as Meifang looked at Makoto's direction only only to feel her chin move up into the air, the pain beginning to echo through her body as she flew right into the air, her eyes able to see Makoto soar above her as another level 3 impact fist crashed right into her face. "_**LIGHTNING!**_" Makoto yelled as soon, Meifang's body formed a small crater as Makoto herself landed on the ground.

'_**Did...Did that do it?**_' Makoto thought as she knew it was going to be too easy if that was the case and luckily...or in this case unluckily for her, Meifang simply rose from the crater unfazed as she dusted the dirt that had accumulated all over her, looking unfazed by the attack she was forced to take as Makoto couldn't help but sigh at that. "**Jesus why won't you just stay down! I hit you for what feels like billions of times already!**" Makoto yelled as Meifang couldn't help but smile at that.

"**Well… after taking a blow like that. Any normal person would be. But you...You Makoto Nanaya are the power that I have been seeking.**" Meifang said as this confused Makoto for a bit as Meifang began to stretch a bit. "**At first, when I saw your picture, I couldn't help but think that the green man and the yellow mask were losing their minds over someone pathetic… but now after fighting you, while you may not be what I want exactly, your strength is something I need by my side.**" Meifang said as this couldn't help but creep Makoto out in the process.

"**Green man? Yellow mask? What the hell are you talking about?!**" Makoto said as she couldn't think straight at that moment, the stress of the fight and knowing that the damage she was doing meant almost nothing to Meifang as Meifang still looked completely fine, except for her clothes being bruised and slightly ripped. "**And anyways… What the hell are you made off!**" Makoto shouted, trying to refocus her train of thought before she lost sight of what was more important as Meifang could clearly see the stress present on her face.

"**Oh you know… flesh and blood like any human being.**" Meifang said as she knew she could exploit this stress to anger Makoto more which meant bringing out more of her power in the process. "**Or do beastkin lack such things in the first place?**" Meifang continued as Makoto suddenly went quiet, the insult hurled her way stung her like no other. Makoto's fist tightened even more as she wanted to say something, reject what Meifang had said… but knew to hold back her tongue.

Meifang couldn't help but smile at the way Makoto remained quiet, knowing that she had struck a nerve. Maybe this was her chance to convince the squirrel lady to stop with the weak punches and finally fight her with all she got? "**Oh don't be like that. It's actually a good thing that you are not human exactly.**" Meifang said as this caused Makoto to look at her surprised as she couldn't believe the sudden change of tone Meifang had.

"**Humans after all..are simply too weak. And weaklings will never be able to fight against those with strength...with power.**" Meifang said, approaching Makoto with each words she spoke as soon she got up close to Makoto's face, her breath hitting Makoto in the face. "**Unless… this show of strength you have been giving me… is in fact your very best.**" Meifang said, making sure Makoto heard her right. "**What did you say?**" Makoto simply questioned as Meifang simply grinned and slowly stepped back.

"**It's simple really. Power is everything. Only those with power can fight against power itself! If you don't have power yourself… then you are nothing.**" Meifang said, slowly assuming her stance once again but this time assuming a blocking stance as her words were starting to ring in Makoto's head, which was enough for her to catch on what she was trying to do. '_**Calm down Makoto… she's just trying to play with you… even if there is some truth to her words.**_' Makoto thought as she simply double downed on her stance. "**Are you done with the lecture or can we continue?**" Makoto said to show she was not fazed by Meifang's words.

"**Well…**** that depends.**" Meifang said as she raised her left hand out. "**When are you going to come at me instead of standing there like a bitch deer with headlights. Or are you so anxious that I need to go to you instead?**" Meifang taunted as this caused Makoto to lose her cool almost immediately. "**SON OF A..!**" Makoto didn't even bother to finish her swear as she charged at Meifang with ferocity, her punches now loaded with vigor and frustration.

However, with frustration breeds inaccuracy and in this case, Meifang was able to clearly see the attacks that Makoto was trying to use against her and slowly but sure used her own momentum against her, deflecting punches meant for her away to her side as Makoto noticed this and couldn't help but get even more annoyed. This lead to her trying to go for a low sweep in her careless rage which Meifang could see from a mile away.

Stopping the momentum of the sweep with a well timed block, Meifang simply raised her leg as Makoto realized what she was about to do and immediately reacted. Placing her hands onto the ground, Makoto managed to drag herself away from the stomp that would have definitely snapped her leg in half as Makoto realized she was allowing Meifang to get into her head, tricking her into making these kinds of silly mistakes that she would not normally make.

'_**God dammit Makoto, Now is not the time to let your emotions get the better of you!**_' Makoto thought, frustrated by how easily Meifang was able to burrow her insults into her and how she was easily being duped as a result. As a result, Meifang decided to go on the offensive herself, charging right for Makoto as she had to raise her guard immediately to block with her cross tonfas as one punch was enough to cause the metal to rattle like never before as her eyes widened at that.

The blow that Makoto had suffered before… she had thought it was simply a lucky hit when she was not expecting it. But from the way she threw that one punch that was causing her tonfas to tremble, she knew now it was not just luck. '_**Shit!**_' Was the only thought in her mind as Meifang began to deliver a series of punches, each one deadly blows on their own as Makoto kept her guard raised at all times, knowing that one missed guard would most likely result in her death as she could feel her arms getting bruised from the barrage she was forced to endure.

'_**God! I can't take this forever!**_' Makoto thought as her eyes caught glimpse of Meifang raising her next fist to punch as Makoto knew if she did not toss her next punch, she will most likely get punched herself as soon as her next attack landed on her block, Makoto immediately stopped blocking, allowing the attack to break her guard as Meifang immediately swung her next attack, ready to strike her when she's vulnerable as Makoto was ready for that.

"**CROSS COUNTER!**" Makoto immediately yelled as she weaved her head to the side to dodge the punch while using the motion to line herself up for a perfect punch. As soon as her fist collided with Meifang's face, Meifang immediately felt the impact strike her in the face several times as she stumbled back, first in confusion but soon had a shit eating grin on her face as the pain she felt when that blow connected was simply pure bliss.

"**W-What the hell!?**" Makoto said out loud, unable to believe what she was seeing at that moment. "**ARE YOU SOME KINKY WEIRDO!? THIS IS SOME SERIOUS KINKY SHIT YOU GOT THERE!**" Makoto yelled as even if she was the kinky type herself, she was not this kinky as she couldn't help but take a few steps back in the process. "**Oh what? You have never heard of a masochist before?**" Meifang said, wiping the blood off her nose with her coat. "**Or could it be that this is your first time seeing one?**" Meifang continued as Makoto simply shivered as her anger was slowly being replaced with creepiness.

"**T-That's not the point!**" Makoto yelled as she gritted her teeth, her feelings thrown out of whack from the signals that Meifang was giving her. "**In that case, you're really going to enjoy this then!**" Makoto yelled as she began to gather the seithr in the area, making Meifang grin as she could see the Seithr flow right into Makoto's arm. Makoto soon cocked her arm back as a giant ars magus seal formed right behind her.

"**BIG BANG SMASH!**" Makoto yelled as she swung, manifesting out a gigantic fist in the process as it flew straight towards Meifang. Meifang would have like to take this hit but even she had her limits as she simply raised her hands and blocked the attack. This resulted in the ground itself destroying itself as Meifang was dragged by the fist, her guard remaining up as her feet dragged itself through the ground as she smashed through a brick wall in the process.

Soon the attack came to an end as Meifang simply stared at her hands and noticed that they were trembling greatly, the impact of the blow severe enough to cause a reaction like this as Meifang couldn't help but have a smile on her face as she walked through the hole in the wall, greatly satisfied with the power being demonstrated to her by this squirrel beastkin. "**Oh come on… Give me a break...**" Makoto whined as she couldn't believe Meifang was even standing at this point.

Meifang on the other hand was now convinced of the power that Makoto had inside her at that moment, the question in her mind was simply...why? "**Tell me something Miss Nanaya. You have such power despite it being so untapped...so raw… so unused. Tell me, why do you even bother resisting against the NOL when the NOL can grant you everything you want?**" Meifang asked as this was a good question in her mind to ask when she sees people revolt against the NOL. Why even raise a flag of rebellion against the most powerful organisation in the world right now?

Makoto simply closed her eyes hearing that. That was a legitimate question any normal person would ask at that moment as she couldn't help but answer that. "**Yeah...Sure, If the NOL COULD grant me anything I want I wouldn't have bothered with the whole resisting thing I am doing right now would I?**" Makoto said as Meifang knew that Makoto was going to retort some more as she purposely left a pause in her speech, as If trying to recompose herself before she continued onward.

Makoto at that moment couldn't help but remember a certain white haired man as she thought about power. Sure she could have worked hard in NOL intelligence under a terrible boss with a void that she couldn't have filled with all the alcohol in the world. But the moment she remembered that white haired man in her darkest moment, the years she had spent alone… were not worth all of the power in the world as she closed her eyes and clenched her necklace tightly.

"**But there's no amount of power that can fill up the empty void of the years I spend feeling so alone… the years that I spent not even knowing of their existence until recently… the years that I could have spent getting that person back that I wasted… That is something power can never get.**" Makoto said as her words couldn't help but shock Meifang as she suddenly dropped the masochistic joy in her face as her mind couldn't help but think about to a person that she had spent time fondly with.

This person… was a person not very well known throughout the world. In fact, they were so mysterious that nobody didn't even knew their true gender as their true identity was obscured to the world. When they had to make public appearances, they always spoke under a white mask that had an emblem and red markings on it and wore robes that were so big and loose that no figure of a body would be present on it. The only clue people had to this person's identity was their long purple hair.

To most people, Tenjo Amanohokosaka or Lord Tenjo to most people was a mysterious figure, the previous Imperator before the current mysterious one. But Meifang knew the former Imperator much more than people did. For one thing, she knew the true identity of the Imperator was that of a sickly woman who wore the mask to help with her inability to break down seithr, a woman who was powerless when the Ikarugan war began, who blamed themselves for their inability to stop such a thing from happening despite giving her people everything they wanted.

Meifang was forced to watch Tenjo as she spent her days fruitlessly trying to end the war without any blood being shed, by using diplomatic means and convincing the people to protest peacefully without the use of violence against the NOL. The NOL were the ones with the power, they were the ones who could do whatever they wanted. They ignored her pleas for peace and the people's peaceful protests, they were the ones who struck first, not the Ikarugans.

Yet Meifang was in the NOL because they had the power she knew she needed to bring change. The change that she knew Tenjo would have wanted, change that only power can reinforce and make a reality so that Lord Tenjo's dreams of peace were not of that of a dream but can be of reality. It didn't matter to her that she was working with the devil in the first place, she needed power and power was king.

"**Not like I would expect someone like you to understand or anything...**" Makoto said. To her, she was simply speaking out her mind. In her mind, she thought of Meifang as simply a cold hearted masochistic person who only fought for the thrill of the hunt like a wild animal. To Meifang however, she couldn't help but feel that Makoto Nanaya at that very moment had spat on her resolve, had insulted her by saying that she was nothing like her with her goals as Meifang dropped the cool facade that she had before and immediately glared back at Makoto with killing intent.

* * *

Meifang: **Then that means you need power Makoto Nanaya!**

Makoto:** H-Huh?**

Meifang: **Without power, How are you going to protect those you want to protect!**

Makoto:** W-What?** (_**W..What's with this sudden sentimental shit coming out of her mouth? she's flipping through every emotion in the book.**_)

Meifang: **WHY WOULD YOU THROW AWAY YOUR ONLY CHANCE AT GAINING STRENGTH!? FOR WHAT! TELL ME MAKOTO NANAYA!**

* * *

"**This...This isn't good...**" Makoto said to herself as Meifang reentered stance but no longer had the playful look on her face, instead replaced with rage as she couldn't believe that Meifang was suddenly becoming like this over a small insult to her supposed inhumanity. Makoto herself could feel her blood coming to a freezing halt as she knew that attack at this point was not going to be an option as Meifang herself for the first time in this battle, went in the offensive.

And the offensive Meifang gave as she began to deliver a series of punches that forced Makoto to dodge, bobbing and weaving her head dangerously close against attacks that were quicker than her eyes could see. As she did so, Meifang's eyes began to glow with a killing intent as Makoto couldn't help but feel like swearing a lot at that moment. '_**Oh shit! This is what I pictured more happening and not before!**_' Makoto thought as her life simply depended on the next series of attacks that Meifang was delivering.

But Meifang was not going to make it easy for Makoto to dodge as she began to deliver a series of swift kicks that were just below Makoto's field of vision, forcing Makoto to start body blocking these kicks aimed right at her stomach as the high heels would have easily made a hole right into her belly if she didn't. Another problem she was dealing with her forced body blocking was now she needed to weave her head even more as Meifang began to mix swift pronged strikes aimed for Makoto's eyes to try and blind her briefly.

And it was not just the way she was throwing these attacks in anger that terrified Makoto. It was the way these attacks would either lead to fatal blows or would outright kill her that terrified Makoto Nanaya as she raised her right arm to block an attempted strike at the side of her throat aimed at her windpipe which would have caused her body to not only seize up but with the force Meifang was going to strike her with, stop her breathing entirely.

'_**Dammit! How am I going to get the hell out of this! She's actually trying to kill me now!**_' Makoto thought as her situation suddenly changed to a dire one as before, Meifang would allow herself to get hit, exposing her body to easy to block attacks and purposely taking damage from powerful hits that would normally be enough to either force people to dodge or downright knock them out. But now Meifang was simply becoming an unstoppable freight train that if Makoto didn't get away from, would be run over on the spot.

'_**I...I need to do something right now!**_' Makoto thought but what should she do? Should she try and fight against this force of nature right in front of her and risk getting mauled in the process? Or should she try to run away and risk getting mauled in the process? She did not repeat her train of thought at that moment. She knew that both options presented the chance for Meifang to tear her apart and which option she chose, would simply be choosing how she would want to die.

But act she needed to do and sitting on her ass will get her killed anyways. '_**Fuck it! I have to end this one way or the other! Any longer and I'm going to be...DAMMIT!**_' Makoto could feel her frustration build as she acted without hesitation no longer. "**I won't… I WON'T LET IT END HERE JUST YET!**" Makoto yelled as she swung with her arm with ferocity, forcibly swiping away Meifang's palm strike to the side, exposing Meifang's gut for that brief moment.

'_**I only did it once… but I got to do it again!**_' Makoto thought as she recalled the feeling that she got on her fist to the one time she did it against a certain creeper who messed with her mind. Cocking her fist back, she quickly released a gut punch right at Meifang's gut as Makoto couldn't help but click her tongue as she realized she messed up the feeling that was in that punch and released it too early. '_**Dammit! Level 2… but it should be enough to stagger her long enough for this next one.**_' Makoto thought as she cocked her fist back for an uppercut.

But before Makoto could even throw her fist right towards Meifang's jaw, Meifang immediately stared back at Makoto's face, ignoring the punch completely as her eyes shone with a killing intent that terrified Makoto into stopping her punch completely. It was through that slight hesitation that Makoto had that left her open to a counter. Meifang did not hold back as Makoto could see from the corner of her eye, Meifang raise her fist in what felt like slow motion as Makoto's instincts at that moment kicked in.

In a split second, where Meifang's fist began to descend for Makoto's face threatening to rip it off her body, Makoto's own fist collided with the attack in what was clearly a desperate play from Makoto. She wasn't thinking at that moment to block or to dodge the attack. Her only train of thought for her own survival was to throw a punch right at the punch aimed for her. Their fists clashed at that moment as a sharp jolt of pain sent shock waves throughout Makoto's body as their bare fists had clashed with each other at that moment.

The backlash from the clashing punches was strong enough to completely blast away the sleeve of Meifang's right fist, completely shredding the cloth and revealing to Makoto's eyes, several black lines running right through her arm starting from what seemed to be the shoulder and ending at the wrists, the lines looking more like actual parts of skin rather than a tattoo Meifang gave herself. The glove that Makoto was wearing simply got shredded to pieces as the Cross Tonfa's restraints were blow off her wrist, clanging to the ground in the process as the combatants were blown away.

As soon as the dust settled, Makoto slowly tried to stand up, feeling the pain course through her arm as blood began to pour from the torn skin of her hands. "**Damn...That sucked...**" Makoto complained as she noticed that Meifang was remaining on the ground for some reason despite looking completely fine. Whatever was going on with her, Makoto knew that this was her chance to run away and run away fast as she turned around, grabbing the cross tonfa in the process as her feet did not stop running.

'_**Got...to get out of here...Fast.**_' Makoto thought, her life now in danger as she shakily held onto her wounded hand as she found the strength to keep running despite the growing pain, adrenaline playing a role in this as she simply hoped that Meifang would stay down long enough for her to get away, not even turning her head around to see if she was still on the ground as her life was on the line and doing things like that may just get her killed, even if she wanted to get information.

As Makoto continued to run, Meifang slowly raised from the ground. Her gaze soon went back to Makoto as she couldn't help but wonder if she should just kill Makoto at that point. While she may be strong, her constant resistance against the NOL will prove to be too difficult to even consider recruiting her to her side unless she used brainwashing techniques. Her arm cocked back, ready to unleash a technique that most people knew her from.

All she needed to do was throw this one punch, this one punch and Makoto will cease moving entirely as Meifang simply remained silent, her fist cocked and ready to swing the fatal blow as she knew it would be so easy to kill Makoto at that moment and the best part was that Makoto would not know what hit her. Meifang then slowly lowered her fist, deciding that killing Makoto while easy, would leave her unsatisfied as she wanted to know something about Miss Nanaya.

She wanted to know, why would Makoto choose to fight against the NOL? Fight against the greatest organization in the world over a singular thing? What was she trying to protect? What was it that she had forgotten for so long that when she remembered it, it drove her to commit this betrayal? These questions and more lingered in Meifang's mind as she simply scoffed a little bit before looking at her torn sleeve, noticing that the skin on her fist was beginning to peel.

"**Fine…**** run away for now little rodent. Count your lucky stars that my curiosity for your reason as to why you would choose to fight against the NOL in the first place is greater than my desire to kill you and earn more power as a result.**" Meifang said as Makoto soon vanished from her eyes, allowing Meifang to pick up the tattered remains of her sleeve and tied it around her fist, grinning a little bit as blood started to turn the makeshift bandage red.

"**If I find out it's for a boring reason… Well.. consider your free trial of life forfeited where you will be standing.**" Meifang said as she began to take a couple of deep breathes, trying to calm down a little as she had not felt this sense of agitation in a long while as soon her serious expression disappeared and the masochistic grin she wore returned as she couldn't help but whistle a little bit. "**Now… Where should I head next?**" Meifang said as she began to walk the opposite direction, wondering..

* * *

** what will be next for her**

* * *

As Meifang allowed her prey to run away, Makoto was none the wiser, thinking that she had somehow managed to evade the craziest son of a bitch...daughter of a bitch… lunatic she has had the displeasure of fighting against. Her feet were starting to get sore with every step she took as she could see the sky slowly start to turn orange as Makoto dropped to her knees, clutching her hand tightly as she felt her whole body going haywire with her.

Her legs were in pain from the non-stop running she did, her hand was screaming in agony as she reached out for her flask of alcohol and poured it directly at the wounded hand, screaming in pain in the process and finally her bowels nearly relieved themselves as she realized that her body itself had thought she was going to die and was going to do the natural thing the body does when someone dies, relieve itself of all the body's dirt as Makoto laid her head on the ground, trying to control her spiraling thoughts.

"_**Oh….OH shit...I feel like shitting my pants...Oh god...I almost died there.**_" Makoto muttered, voicing out all of the thoughts that were rushing through her mind in that process as her heart raced like no other. Taking a few deep breathes of her own, Makoto soon managed to calm down her entire body, slowly assuming a sitting position on the ground she laid as she groaned when she tried to check the condition of her hand.

She couldn't believe that she was even alive at this point. She was sure that Meifang was going to kill her at that point. '_**To think...that a woman like her, would suddenly become that violent like that.**_' Makoto thought, thinking back to what triggered Meifang's sudden aggression in the first place, when she questioned if Meifang had anybody she cared about. '_**Either way… Best to stay away from her from now on… if I want to live…**_' Makoto thought as she soon stood up.

As she stood up, she looked at her banged up arm as touching it was enough to make her groan in agony. "_**First...I am going to need to fix this arm...if I can find a doctor here...**_" Makoto said as she couldn't help but simply moan more in pain she looked at the sky and her eyes couldn't help but widen as she realized the time she needed to meet up with Noel was coming soon and with her current injured state she was going to worry Noel when she comes around.

'_**Dammit… I should go and get myself patched up before I see Noel… But with what's going on lately...**_' Makoto soon looked at her hand before looking at the the distance as she couldn't help but grit her teeth. '_**Maybe I can ask Noel to temporarily patch me up with some healing ars magus… I guess I got no choice but to go and see her and make sure Noellie's safe in all of this.**_' Makoto thought as she began to make her way towards where Noel might be…

* * *

**...Not knowing that her day was going to become much more worse...**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING IN THIS FINE DAY IN A WORLD WHERE VIRUSES HAVE GONE WILD! But in all honest, in just a few weeks this whole Corona Virus thing has gone quite out of hand. There's new stuff being discovered about the virus everyday and while I caution panicking and calling this the end times, At least make sure if you are sick don't go out and get other people sick. In any other case, While Virus season is going on, I will still make sure to keep rolling out the regular content so don't worry about that. If anything does happen, I will be sure to make sure you guys are informed.**

**IN ANY CASE, WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TO MAKOTO NANAYA IN THIS CRAZY ESCAPADE!? WILL SHE BE ABLE TO GET THAT HAND OF HERS PATCHED UP BEFORE HER NEXT FIGHT!? WILL THIS HAVE ANY RAMIFICATIONS IN THE FUTURE!? AND JUST WHAT KIND OF PLANS DOES MEIFANG HAVE FOR THE FUTURE!? Well… with things heating up, I say to keep reading on if you dare.**


	23. Canon 22: Marionette

( A New Canon is approaching us! Let us see what will happen next to Makoto Nanaya as she navigates the situation in front of her.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 22

Where was Makoto going? Even she did not know at this point. After barely surviving fighting against Meifang LapisLazuli she should be counting on her luck to help her find her best friend in all of this. Unfortunately all luck must die some time and it looks like she wasted it surviving Meifang as Makoto couldn't help but look at her bandaged right arm, instinctively reaching out to touch it only to be met with pain as she had to bite her lips to stop herself from screaming too loud.

'_**Son of a... God that hurts so much.**_' Makoto thought as she took a seat and quickly whipped out her flask, tempted to drink to dull the pain only to stop herself immediately. '_**No! Don't get dependent on Alcohol Makoto! You've got to control yourself.**_' Makoto thought, trying to resist the urge to numb the pain as she wanted to get moving once again only to feel exhausted when she tried to stand up.

Was she running on Adrenaline this entire time and she was unaware of it? Whatever the case it was, Makoto simply knew that her body's strength suddenly left her and it was going to take her some time for her before she could start moving a little again. '_**I don't have time to waste sitting around and doing nothing...but I need to rest up to regain my strength... dammit.**_' Makoto thought as she used this time to take deep breathes to calm herself down.

'_**Still... this sucks...**_' Makoto thought as she looked at her wounded hand and began to slowly inspect her injured arm to assess if it she can use healing ars magus or if she would need more intensive methods. Just a slight nudge was enough to make Makoto realize that the punch she clashed with Meifang with was a lot worse than she had originally thought as this made Makoto weigh down the options in front of her.

'_**I could contact Noellie and let her know I got injured... but I do that, Noellie will get worried for sure and try to find me instead. I could also consider getting my arm looked in secret but how long will that take and where do I even go to do that?**_'Makoto said as she looked to see the bounty board and sighed when she saw that her face was on there, the bounty for her simply said currently pending as Makoto couldn't believe that she was a wanted criminal now.

"_**The folks are definitely going to be worried for me now... if they weren't worried before.**_" Makoto said to herself, realizing that most likely, her bounty would be all over her hometown of Shinatsu by this point and that her folks would have already seen it by now. "_**I Just hope that when I head back home, I don't get spammed with missed messages from Mom or Dad... Oh who am I kidding, they must have called me 100 times by this point.**_" Makoto joked, trying to take her mind away from the pain her arm was suffering to other things.

'_**Oh who am I kidding... worrying if my parents have flooded my voice inbox with worried messages wondering where I am is the least of my worries right now.**_' Makoto thought as she reached out to touch her necklace fondly, realizing that this time she had to relax was also time for her to let her mind simply wonder about and think about things that she had not think about for a while now.

'_**Is this what Sora felt when he decided to willingly keep the Black Lotus a secret? This feeling of knowing something dangerous yet not wanting to tell people about it for fear of the worst? Maybe... Maybe not. I am not him after all at the end of the day.**_' Makoto thought as her eyes gazed themselves right at the emblen etched onto the tags, the emblem of Sora's drive as she began to fondly stroke it as she clutched it gently.

'_**Sora... wherever you may be right now... please don't be so far away that I won't be able to find you in time...**_' Makoto thought as her mind began to think about what would happen after some time. The god that was after Sora and was erasing him from everyone's minds... what if it came back for her and took away her memories of Sora from her once again? What would happen then? What would be his reaction when he sees her only for her to greet him like a stranger.

'_**No! I won't let that happen!**_' Makoto thought, slamming her injured fist on the seat and causing more pain in the process as Makoto struggled to keep her mouth shut as her worries was starting to get to her at that moment. '_**I can't let that happen... I can't...let Sora see me without having any memory of him. I just can't...**_' Makoto thought, trying to push back the bad thoughts that were trying to worm their way into her mind as she struggled to remain positive at that moment.

'_**Don't lose yourself Makoto... even with the crazy shit that's happening all around you, just don't lose yourself**_.' Makoto told herself, reinforcing it with positive thoughts as she knew very well what negativity would do to her in this situation. '_**Just need to focus on protecting Noel and finding Sora... that's all I need to do.**_' Makoto told herself as to most people, this seemed unnecessary to repeat what she was thinking out loud in her mind and trying to reinforce it with positive thoughts but to Makoto, she needed this.

She needed to remind herself of what she's fighting for, of what the consequences will be if she chose to give up now. What she will lose and how she would feel when that loss comes. She knew what was going to be the result if she allowed things... god to continue doing what they want. She was not going to let god win this time as this time things will be different and they will be different by her own hands... if only she would get her ass off this god damn bench and start heading towards her goal.

"**Hmmm? I did not expect to meet you here.**" A voice spoke as this immediately made Makoto tense up where she sat. Her eyes were closed at the time when she was giving herself that pep talk so she didn't know who she was talking to as she slowly opened her eyes to see who it was. Her eyes soon widened even more in shock as she realized who she was talking to as the person simply did a courteous bow in front of her.

The person talking to her was a little boy with his blue eys and blond hair. He wore a purple outfit that resembled a person from a few centuries ago with his fancy top hat and coat. Behind him was a massive doll like figure, her face lacking any features other than the blond on her hair and the sharp claws she had. The feminine doll like figure reminded Makoto of another doll like figure as she looked at the little boy in front of her with a series of mixed feelings within her.

"**Is there something the matter Miss Nanaya? You look like you have seen a ghost?**" The boy said as Makoto couldn't help but mutter out a comment under her breath. "_**You... You look almost just like him...Carl.**_" Makoto said, piquing Carl Clover's interest as she shook her head. "**S-Sorry. I was just zoning out that's all.**" Makoto said, finally able to get off the bench to walk up to Carl to give him a hug only for the boy to simply raise his hands to stop her.

"**It's alright. You don't need to force yourself to give me a hug. I can see that your hand has been injured after all.**" Carl said, politely smiling as Makoto couldn't help but instinctively hide her hand in the process. "**Well... Nothing escapes your eyes like usual Carl.**" Makoto said as she couldn't even believe that Carl was here in the first place. 'Now that I think about it... I rarely even saw Carl back in the Academy... I wonder what he has been doing lately.'

"**Should we take a seat Miss Nanaya? I think we do have quite a bit to discuss.**" Carl said as Makoto couldn't help but relax and agree to his suggestion. Yet at the same time, as she sat down, she couldn't help but get a bad feeling coming out from Carl... a feeling that was all too familiar to her at this point as he looked at her with a smile on his face as the gigantic doll like thing simply went behind the bench, her eyes looking at the thing for a while.

"**Oh don't mind Ada. She's just looking out for me.**" Carl said as Makoto couldn't help but keep looking at Ada. 'Ada... isn't that the name of Carl's...' Makoto mind was able to piece together what Carl meant by Ada as Carl simply frowned a little. "**I know.. it's a long story but... yes... That's my big sister Ada... I didn't want you to meet her like this...but at least you two get to meet each other now. Come on Ada. Give her a handshake.**" Carl said as Ada rose her claw like hand to shake Makoto's hand, Makoto herself a bit unnerved by what was going on.

'_**Ada?.. She.. She looks like...**_' Makoto shook her head, realizing where her mind was going as she raised her hand to shake Ada's hand. "**It's nice to meet you Ada. My name's Makoto and I was Carl's classmate in the academy while he was there.**" Makoto said, shaking the giant automaton's hand as the more she looked at Carl. The more she couldn't help but be reminded of a certain mask wearing gentleman as the image of Relius Clover was slowly overlaying itself on top of Carl.

"**So..How are you doing right now Carl? What have you been doing lately?**" Makoto said, trying to change the conversation as Carl didn't seem to notice Makoto's attempt to change the conversation as his smile was enough to remind her more of Relius. "**Well... after dropping out of the academy and spending some time to care for Ada. I decided to become a vigilante and hopefully find a way to give big sister her body back.**" Carl said as Makoto couldn't help but feel sad at the words being spoken by Carl.

'_**God... What happened to him... Unless...**_' Makoto's mind began to play more and more scenarios in her mind as to what had actually happened to Ada... in fact, what happened to Carl's family in general as Makoto closed her eyes for a bit. "**So... How are you doing with the Vigilantee business so far? Are you being kept busy these days with the job?**" Makoto questioned as Carl simply shook his head. "Not really. Big Sister has been a really big help with my job. In any other case, you need to nurse that injury of yours." Carl said, soon grabbing a mysterious looking ars magus potion.

"**You should take this. I got it from a street vendor I normally go to grab these kinds of things. Don't worry. It's completely safe for consumption.**" Carl said as Makoto looked at the Ars Magus liquid with some skepticism in her eyes. Why was Carl of all people buying products from strange people? She wanted to take it... wanted to thank him for giving her some relief for the pain she was feeling but there was something bad...something really off about Carl's gesture as Makoto politely smiled at the boy.

"**It's alright Carl. I don't need it right now. I plan to see a doctor as soon as possible so... you keep that to yourself buddy.**" Makoto said as Carl was surprised by this gesture, simply smiling and putting the potion back to his cape. "**That's understandable... Though I must ask Makoto... How on earth did you even end up becoming a wanted criminal in the first place?**" Carl said as Makoto's blood immediately froze at that moment, Carl's words striking true.

What should she say at that moment? Anything she said would be placed under heavy scrutiny by Carl so she knew that she needed to say something as not saying anything will make the situation much worse as she looked at Carl before taking a deep breath. "**What if I told you it was a long story and you handing me to the NOL will not get you that story.**" Makoto said as she simply waited with tension in the air for Carl's response, her eyes watching Ada as she was ready for another fight if she needed to.

Carl himself however was not looking for a fight and his eyes did not fail to notice Makoto's fists slowly clenching into a fighting pose as Carl knew what he had to do to try and defuse the situation. "**Now don't get me wrong. While your bounty is going to be plenty, I do not wish to hand you in to the NOL. As a friend I want to help you to the best of my abilities.**" Carl said as this was soon to be the start of what felt like a negotiation talk.

* * *

Makoto: **Help me to the best of your abilities? Aren't you a vigilante Carl? Don't you get less profit helping the criminals?**

Carl:** Of course. But in my line of work, I have learned that sometimes, criminals are the best way to get what you want.**

Makoto: **Of course… What are you thinking of exactly?**

Carl: **Well… I need your help to help me find someone. After all, A former NOL Intelligence officer is guaranteed to have the information one requires.**

Makoto:**… That depends Carl. Who on earth are you trying to find in a city like Kagutsuchi in the first place?**

* * *

Makoto's question rang true as she awaited the young boy's answer. Who was the person that Carl was trying to find? And why even ask Makoto for her help when she might not even be able to provide him the help that he seeked. Carl simply took a pause to allow the situation to sink in before asking for the person he had in mind. "**I am looking for my father. Relius Clover you see. I need to find him and punish him for what he had done to Ada.**"

The moment Carl mentioned Relius's name, Makoto could feel her guts do a few knots. Relius Clover… the man responsible for a lot of things, messing with her mind and nearly turning her into a vegetable in the process being one of them… and Carl wanted to find a man like that. "**Why do you want to find your pops huh? Do you plan on killing him?**" Makoto questioned as Carl simply shook his head.

"**Killing him outright will do nothing for me. I need him to undo… what he did to my sister. Only after that, can I truly feel like things will be back to normal.**" Carl said as Makoto bit her lips a little, seeing Carl's face emit a look of sadness as he looked at Ada. "**He's the one responsible for turning Ada into...Into this thing. This is not what my sister is supposed to look like. She's supposed to be so much more than this… This thing!**" Carl said, Makoto noticing his voice was becoming more hostile.

"**If it wasn't for what he did, Sister would have had a much better life already! She wouldn't have had to suffer in her current state and we could have been happy together! But my father...MY FATHER TOOK THAT AWAY FROM HER! HOW CAN I STAND HERE AND NOT DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT!**" Carl shouted, his anger seeping through the surface as Makoto could now sense the blood lust that Carl was trying to hide as he tried to calm himself down, realizing that Makoto herself was able to see what he was showing.

"**In any case… now that you know why I want to find my father… Can you help me or not?**" Carl asked, Makoto deciding that now was a good time to get off the bench and start standing up as she knew what answer she needed to give him. "**I'm sorry Carl… I don't know where Relius is. And even if I did, I don't think it's a good idea for you to confront him in the first place.**" Makoto said as Carl simply remained quiet, shaking his head a little from this.

"**I was hoping that we would be able to cooperate with each other Miss Nanaya… I truly hoped so.**" Carl said before without warning, Ada swung her claws right for Makoto's face, Makoto herself barely dodging the sharp claws that she now bared before returning back to Carl's side. "**If I can at least bring you to the NOL headquarters. I will be able to find more information on my father that way. Even if it means putting your life at risk.**" Carl said as Makoto couldn't believe what he was saying in the first place.

"**C-Come on Carl. We're friends here. There's no need to do stuff like that right? Why don't we team up and try to find out about Relius together, and work with each other to take him down in a safe manner?**" Makoto said, trying to convince the boy that there was another way but Carl himself simply shook his head. "**I thought about that and I realized that while working together we may be able to achieve that, Handing you over to the NOL will be the faster route and also guarantee that I will be able to confront my father face to face.**" Carl said with a calm and eerie calculating voice… similar to his father.

"**So…**** are you going to keep trying to convince me to follow your plan?.. Or should I proceed with mine?**" Carl said, draping his cape over his shoulder and exposed his hands as Makoto began to wonder what should she do. Should she try to run? Her arm was the only part that was injured but who knows what other kind of damage she might have suffered in that fight with Meifang. There's also the fact that if Relius had any input to what happened with Ada… Ada herself was a lethal weapon now as Makoto kept having this nagging feeling about her… the feeling like she had seen her in her current form before.

All she knew at this point was that she cannot afford to get caught. She made a promise to Noel to not only meet up with her. But also help her with Tsubaki and try to talk to them. '_**Sorry Carl. Fighting you is definitely not an option right now.**_' Makoto thought as she started running, boldly going for the straight forward charge as Carl simply thought that she was going for the offensive. "**The hard way… That's unfortunate Miss Nanaya. I was really hoping not to do this… Sister. Get her!**"

As soon as Carl gave the command, Ada began to move, swinging her claws once again as Makoto weaved her head, dodging the swipes as she managed to slip past Carl. Carl now realizing what Makoto was trying to do immediately snapped his fingers, commanding Ada to get in front of Makoto to try and cut off her escape. "**It's understandable why you would try running now. You're currently injured as I can see and you would like a direct confrontation.**" Carl commented as Makoto realized she was pinned between the siblings.

'_**Oh great. I am between a gigantic robot and a small child… I want to run past the small child but I feel like that's going to be a bait and switch. All I know is…**_' Before Makoto could finish that thought, Ada suddenly charged forward, thrusting her right claw towards her as Carl ran towards Makoto, going for a low sweep using what looked like automatons… similar to his father's. '_**I am in the middle of a pickle!**_' Makoto thought as she jumped up and turned herself towards Ada, forming a barrier to protect herself from Ada's attack, pushing her away from the duo and getting away from the flank.

Carl however was not done as he jumped onto Ada's shoulder and braced himself on her. Ada soon charged, cracking the ground with a combination of her weight and speed as Makoto's eyes widened at that. Carl then leaped off Ada as she got closer, forming a mechanical knight from his cape and having it thrust it's robotic lance right at Makoto as Ada herself sweep her claws right at Makoto's feet, threatening to bisect them if Makoto did not jump.

But if she jumped, she would get impaled by Carl's robo knight. She could dodge to the side but who knows what will happen after that. '_**Screw this guessing game. I need to get away, NOW!**_' Makoto thought as instead of following this, Makoto simply began to run the other direction. Ignoring the attack completely and focus her efforts in simply just running away. Fighting at this point, with her injury and current tired state was simply not an option she could afford.

If she kept on fighting every single fight she took a part in, She wouldn't last long. As much as she wants to help Carl with his pops. Relius is a man she did not want to mess around with right now, in fact, if she could avoid the man for the rest of her life she will. '_**Sorry Carl… I cannot afford to get caught right now. I just know what will happen to me if I do.**_' Makoto thought as she pictured what would happen next in her mind as she continued running away from Carl.

If she were to be captured. She would first end up in the interrogation room with her former captain Hazama, where he would use "Interrogation" methods get her to confess before handing her ass to Relius where if he was like the person he was the last time… Her mind may not be able to survive another mind raping from the world's greatest dad. As she continued running, just thinking about these simply sent shivers down her spine as she turned her back to see Ada and Carl chase after her, Carl remaining eerie calm as his eyes were laser focused on her as she realized she will need much more drastic measures to get away.

Looking to the railings, she realized she could get away by jumping it. But did she really want to jump without looking down? Of course not. she's not that dumb to do something like that. '_**I need something...a bit more drastic.**_' Makoto thought as she looked to see an alleyway she could use as an idea...a really dumb but risky idea came to her mind. '_**If I am a criminal, might as well play the part of one as well.**_' Makoto thought as she ran straight for the Alley, Carl confident that he had managed to corner Makoto in the process.

'**Looks like it's the end of the road, Miss Nanaya.**' Carl thought as Ada continued to give chase. As she did however, Makoto was secretly charging up her uninjured fist as she got right in the middle of the alleyway. '_**If I can be honest...as much as I think this is wrong… I always wanted to do this.**_' Makoto thought as she leaped off her feet, revealing her charged fist, forcing Ada to immediately stop and brace Carl for what she sensed was danger as Makoto threw a big bang smash right onto a brick building.

"_**PROPERTY DAMAGE!**_" Makoto yelled, the astral fist smashing itself right into the brick building that she hoped was at least abandoned, causing rubble to collapse right onto the street as a huge amount of dust kicked up at that moment. The rubble forced Ada to push both herself and Carl back a bit as Makoto used this as her chance to enact her escape plan as soon the dust had settled and the damage had been done.

"**Thank you sis...**" Carl said as he looked at the carnage that had happened right in front of him as both him and Ada moved their way into the alley to try and search for Makoto's last direction. "**She couldn't have gone too far. Let's keep going.**" Carl said as Ada simply remained quiet, responding to the boy's wishes as they both continued deeper into the alleyway. As they did so, in a trashcan that was tipped over, Makoto slowly lifted the lid to observe Carl going deeper into the alley.

'_**Man.. that was way too close.**_' Makoto thought as she slowly crawled her way out of the trashcan before quietly sprinting away from the duo, glad that her plan worked… at the price of her causing property damage and more attention being drawn her way. '_**This is probably going to make life even more difficult for me… as if I needed more difficulty in my life right now.**_' Makoto thought as she didn't stop running once again, making sure that she was far away from the boy before finally coming to a stop in an abandoned building.

"_**This should be far away from Carl now...**_" Makoto muttered as she sat down on a chair, glad that she got away from Carl but not glad that she had to do so in the first place. Just what happened to the sweet little boy she once knew… and was that really her sister. "_**I wonder...**_" Makoto thought as she pulled out her phone, noticing how it's battery was slowly starting to run out and she needed to charge it soon.

'_**As much as battery life is important. I just need to scratch this itch.**_' Makoto thought as she went to the one source of information that all information goes to… the internet and began to look through a series of articles, particularly talking about the Nox nyctores ranging from conspiracy theories to the actual history about them. Soon she managed to find what she was thinking about as in an article talking about the 10 Nox nyctores, one of them stood out in it's description.

"**Deus Machina: Nirvana. One of the 10 Nox Nyctores ever created. While most of the information about this Nox Nyctores is lost like other Nox Nyctoreses, Nirvana was theorized to be not an actual weapon, but a mechanical doll that had sentience of it's own.**" The article explained as Makoto couldn't help but begin to wonder, if Ada was actually Nirvana. But if that is the case, what is the other mechanical doll that Relius had with him? Is that a Nirvana as well?

"_**No...No, not now Makoto. Don't get distracted by these things Makoto.**_" Makoto told herself as she realized she was letting her mind think of crazy things once again when she should be focusing on other matters at hand. One of those things being her meetup with Noel and how right now she has to focus on getting back to Noel… even if it means commiting more crimes in the process as she decided to check her phone in the process for the time.

"_**Oh no it's getting late… I better get back to Noellie otherwise things will get worse.**_" Makoto said as she had spent way too much time sitting around and doing nothing and less time actually getting to Noel and meeting up with her. As the sun slowly started to set, Makoto couldn't help but wonder if her troubles were going to continue piling up as the days continued and if so, just how much more criminal acts will she need to commit…

* * *

**To protect not just herself, but everyone she cares for.**

* * *

As Makoto made her way to Noel. The man that Carl Clover was searching for, Relius Clover, was busy doing some research in his lab in Kagutsuchi. While he was here for other things, that doesn't mean that he should stop doing his research. Particularly into Makoto Nanaya as he couldn't help but wonder, what was the factors that he saw that helped her to come back from what was essentially the brink of despair.

Thankfully, He had Hazama make sure his memories of the incident were kept intact as he began to compose what he saw into a series of documents, written in a typewriter to prevent people from spying on his work and potentially discovering his secret research. As he was doing so, A knock was heard on the door as Relius simply lifted his head. "**Come in.**" Relius simply said as the door opened, revealing Hazama as he walked into the room and saw Relius was already back to his writing.

"**Oh come on. Ignoring me already? I came here to see if you are alright.**" Hazama chimed as Relius simply ignored Hazama and continued typing, the rhythmic tapping of the typewriter ringing in his ears as Hazama tried to take a peek only to feel a pair of eyes stare right back at him. "**Can you at least ask your thing to not stare at me like that. I feel like an unwelcome guest with the way she's glaring at me.**" Hazama said as Ignis came out of the corner she was hiding as Relius finally looked at the green haired man, having ignored the man's request.

"**Well.. if you do not want her to look at you like that. It will do you good to not bother me as I am busy doing research here.**" Relius said as Hazama looked at what Relius was typing and sighed. "**And that research is on the rodent of all things? I thought you would be more interested in the Azure with her ****successor**** finally here.**" Hazama said as Relius took a small deep breath, staring right at Hazama without showing any emotion on his face.

"**Oh I am… but that doesn't mean that I can neglect my main focus right now.**" Relius simply replied as Hazama simply shrugged his shoulder. "**Well suit yourself then. In any case, I thought I would let you know that the rodent you're so interested in researching is here in Kagutsuchi.**" Hazama said as this made Relius raise his head a little. "**And do you know where she went?**" Relius simply questioned as Hazama shrugged again.

"**I don't know. The bitch who found her allowed her to escape.**" Hazama said as Relius simply thought about something for a bit before shrugging. "**It's no matter, I may know where she might head next.**" Relius said as Hazama became interested by his words and was about to ask how he was going to do so but Relius already knew what Hazama was thinking before his words could come out.

"**And I will not tell you what I have in mind… In fact, I will be going out soon. And I would greatly appreciate if you do not follow me later when I head out. If I catch you doing so, you will pay for it.**" Relius threatened as Hazama simply raise his hands in shock by his friend's words. "**Why are you so serious like that? I wouldn't interfere in any plans that you might have.**" Hazama said as Relius simply nodded his head at that.

"**Good. Now if you would excuse me, I must continue writing this report and must ask you to leave right now.**" Relius said as Hazama turned his back to the masked man and formed a small scowl. "**Fine. I just don't know what you see on that little rodent in the first place that you can see on any other person.**" Hazama mumbled as Relius soon heard his door close with slight force as Relius rubbed his forehead, glad his friend finally left him alone as he simply shook his head.

* * *

"**As if I need to tell you my dear friend...**" Relius said as he continued writing his report, as if the conversation he just had didn't exist.

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING ON THIS FINE DAY! Well… University has started for me...is what I would like to say if Corona Virus did not postpone it. Now don't get me wrong, while I like any other university student would be happy about this, It goes to show how bad the Corona Virus is even if it's not really a fatal disease. In any case, do take care while out there folks.**

**SO! WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT!? WHERE WILL MAKOTO GO AFTER THIS!? WILL SHE FINALLY BE ABLE TO MEET UP WITH NOEL IN TIME!? WHO ELSE WILL SHE ENCOUNTER IF ANY ON HER WAY TO NOEL!? AND HOW DOES RELIUS INTEND TO FIND MAKOTO!? Well… as long as there is questions that need to be answered, This story will not come to it's close. So read on if you dare.**


	24. Canon 23: Clash Of The Night

( A New Canon approaches. Let us see where this one leads us to... Shall we.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 23

The Night. It can be known as a lot of things. To normal people, the night is usually the sign that the day is over and for them to either return to their homes to their loved ones and spend time with them or to hang out with friends and party the rest of the day off. To criminals, vigilantes and those who work in the military, They simply see the night as good cover against those that might be pursuing them or the perfect setting for an ambush due to the often times lack of light in most places.

To Makoto Nanaya the night was neither of those things. To her, The night at this point was just an extension of the day time only with god deciding to turn the lights off. Even if she wanted to sleep now, she couldn't due to her job at Intelligence dictating that she remain awake at all times of the day until she could finally rest in bed. However for her in this day, as much as she wanted to rest now, with her arm screaming in pain, she could not for a simple reason.

'_**Don't worry Noelie. I am almost there.**_' Makoto thought as she checked her clock. 6 PM, The sun had fully dawned and now the night had arrived. This simply meant that Noel should be waiting for her at this moment back at the park they met just the last night. If Makoto can get back to Noel and make sure she's alright, she can finally talk to Kokonoe, ask her to take Noel somewhere safe and then fully focus her search for Sora.

'_**As long as I know Noellie will be safe in the professor's hands, I can fully dedicate everything to my search for Sora. I just hope she isn't as horrible as my former boss.**_' Makoto thought as she slipped into an alley covered in the shadows, trying to stay out of the line of sight of the general public as now that she knew her bounty was out, any normal citizen of the law would be reporting her location... even if they look like they do not care in the first place.

And Makoto knew the reason why stealth was important. '_**I'm not like Ragna the Bloodedge. I don't have so high of a bounty that I can intimidate people into not reporting about me! I would be a lunatic for thinking I can get away with what that guy probably can.**_' Makoto thought as she noticed a group of people gathering around her location at that moment, cutting off one of her routes as she was forced to take another path to hopefully not get spotted by the general public.

As much as she would have liked to walk among with the crowd, trying to play it cool and not draw attention to herself, her beastkin features simply made her stand out too much as she continued roaming through the alleys, staying away from the city streets and the bright neon lights they cast as Makoto continued to check her phone for the time. Each time she did, the time continued to push forwards by a few minutes until she realized that she was wasting time trying to play it safe and stay in the shadows.

'_**I've got no choice huh... going out to the streets is the safer bet right now and will waste me less time.**_' Makoto thought as she looked at the streets themselves, their bright lights shining through the dim alleys as she took a couple of deep breathes. '_**Just get in... don't draw attention to yourself... get out and meet Noellie. You're almost there...**_' Makoto thought as using the goal of her meeting back up with Noellie on time, Makoto bravely walked into the streets, allowing the crowd to push her into their flow and take her to where they wanted to go.

As she did, she couldn't help but listen to the conversations of the normal people around her, people whose lives were not as insane as hers had become at this point. "**Come on now. Just come with us for a drink. Just for tonight.**" A man with a suit said, pulling his tie down as he wrapped his arm around another man with a suit, most likely his colleague. "**You know I cannot sir. I have a wife and kid waiting for me right now.**" The man replied as Makoto decided to shift her focus to another conversation.

"**And so I said to him, Yeah sure I don't mind. But you know what he does instead? Hangs up on me! I swear the nerve of that man!**" A woman complained on her phone, most likely to her friends with the way she was speaking. It was highly unlikely that she was speaking to a family member with the informal language and tone she was using. As much as she didn't want to be over analytical, it's because of her former position in the NOL intelligence department as her innate curiosity that made her pay attention to conversations more often.

"_**Just forget about the conversations and focus on getting to where you need to be Makoto.**_" Makoto mumbled to herself, reminding herself that she has no time to walk around in such a leisurely manner. Despite her eagerness to get out of her, the crowd simply would not relent as more and more people began to walk the same street she was at. Makoto was going to lose hope at maintaining her stealth until her eyes managed to catch the sight of what appeared to be a sign.

'_**The port district... That's it!**_' Makoto thought as she was simply relieved that she was finally at what seemed to be a light at the end of the tunnel as she turned her way towards the port district. The reason why she was so happy to see the port district was because the port district was where she had met Noel. So knowing that she was near where they were supposed to meet was enough to make Makoto feel that her risk was worth it.

'_**Better not waste time and meet up with Noel quick.**_' Makoto thought as she looked up to the sky and briefly saw a streak of light cross her vision as she was quick to deduce that tonight was going to be a rainy night. "_**Especially if it's going to start raining on me... well at least I will get a shower of sorts..I guess.**_" Makoto said as while she was mildly annoyed her clothes would get wet in the process, at least she was in the clear from the general public to go at her full speed to hopefully meet Noel and not anybody else.

'_**Please don't do anything rash… Noel...Tsubaki.**_' Makoto thought as her mind was racing through various thoughts, having now decided to start using the various pipes that laid through the port district to make her way faster to the spot she met Noel, each pipe her feet making a loud clang as she soon saw a pair of stairs that she could take that were not under heavy NOL watch as she soon swapped to that to minimize her trail.

As she walked up the stairs of the port district, all Makoto could hope at this point was for Noel to not be in any kind of trouble. Noel Vermillion has always had a way of causing trouble whether it may be as something as minor as her death dinner or something as drastic as the time Her, Tsubaki and Noel fell down that pit all those years in the academy, forcing Makoto to save her by cushioning the fall with her tail. As Makoto walked up the final steps, her eyes bore witness to a sight that she thought she would ever see… let alone want to see.

There she was...Makoto Nanaya, Watching her two friends, Noel Vermillion and Tsubaki Yayoi, engaged in armed combat for some reason as Noel panic fired a couple of shots from her guns Bolverk, shots that were meant to warn Tsubaki not to approach her. However Tsubaki did not care about that and instead used the Izayoi, the weapon granted to her by her family generations ago to block Noel's Bolverk blasts and unleash her own series of attacks, detaching the sword to form a whip of sorts.

With said whip, Tsubaki used it to nullify Noel's range advantage, cracking it through the air and managing to wrap it around one of the Bolverks, snatching it out of Noel's hand and causing it to slide on the ground. Noel herself shook her head as she focused and summoned the stolen Bolverk back to her hands. As she did so, Tsubaki used this as her chance to get closer, surprising Noel enough to force the young girl to block the attack thrown in front of her, causing the two to separate as a result.

'_**W-What the hell happened!?**_' Makoto thought as at first, Makoto stared at the fight that was happening right in front of her, unable to understand why this was happening and how on Earth did Tsubaki and Noel even meet in the first place. '_**Didn't I warn Noel not to meet Tsubaki!?… Or did Tsubaki somehow manage to find her...**_'Makoto thought as several thoughts were racing through her mind as she was trying to register what was going on in front of her.

"**TSUBAKI! STOP THIS PLEASE! I DON'T WANT TO HURT YOU!**" Noel screamed as Tsubaki ignored what her friend said and immediately charged right for Noel with her shield in front of her. Noel, not wanting to harm her friend, shot the ground in front of her, creating a pot hole to try and force Tsubaki to trip instead. Tsubaki was not going to fall for it however as she jumped over the pothole Noel made and immediately swung with her sword, causing the two to clash once again as Makoto could clearly see the anger in Tsubaki's eyes, her eyes burning with hatred for some reason.

"**Hurt me? Is that what you call what you have been doing?! ARE YOU TRYING TO PITY ME!?**" Tsubaki yelled as Noel felt a breeze come from below, blowing away her military cap and exposing her long blonde hair to both Tsubaki and Makoto as Tsubaki had nearly sliced her own friend in half. "**IS THAT WHAT YOU CALL YOUR KINDNESS TO ME!? JUST BECAUSE I AM WEAKER THAN YOU!?**" Tsubaki screamed, confusion present in her voice as Makoto herself couldn't believe Tsubaki, the calm and collected friend she knew, was displaying such irrational anger.

"**THAT'S NOT WHAT I AM TRYING TO DO TSUBAKI!**" Noel screamed as she exposed her back to Tsubaki and immediately pushed her whole weight right onto Tsubaki, forcing the red haired girl to slide as Noel panted quite a bit. "**I AM SAYING THAT AS YOUR FRIEND. I DON'T WANT TO HURT YOU! That's why… THAT'S WHY I REFUSE TO HURT YOU! BECAUSE WE ARE FRIENDS TSUBAKI!**" Noel yelled as Tsubaki went quiet after that, Noel looking at her with some hope in her eyes as she thought her words had finally reached Tsubaki at this point.

"**Then please Noel… as my friend. DON'T MAKE THIS MORE PAINFUL THAN IT HAS TO BE!**" Tsubaki screamed, Makoto able to see tears forming out of the corner of Tsubaki's eyes as Tsubaki swung the Izayoi, baiting Noel to blocking only to quickly gather Seithr right into the blade of the Izayoi, causing a distortion drive to occur as Makoto's eyes widened at that. '_**No...Tsubaki..stop.**_' Makoto thought as her entire body stood up at that, realizing that Tsubaki was determined to kill Noel no matter what.

"**YOU CANNOT DO THAT! TSUBAKI!**" Makoto yelled as she got out from the spot that she had hid from, running right between Noel and Tsubaki to intercept Tsubaki's attack. Tsubaki, blinded by both rage and sadness, did not notice her friend standing in the way of her attack and proceeded anyways as Noel herself get pushed to the side as Tsubaki lunged forward with great speed, forcing Makoto to block with her bare arms as she had no time to form a barrier from nowhere.

As a result, Makoto could feel the blade of the Izayoi dig itself into her injured arm more, making her scream in agony as both Tsubaki and Noel realized what had just happened as soon as the bloodcurdling scream was let out. Tsubaki barely managed to stop her attack, stopping herself from slicing her best friend's arm off in the process as Noel's panicked face told the whole story of what was going on at that moment.

"**M-MAKOTO!**" Noel screamed as Tsubaki realized what she had done, dropping the Izayoi from her hand as she gasped with the shock of what she had done striking her. Noel ran towards Makoto in a panicked state, immediately casting a healing ars magus onto Makoto's wound, healing it slowly as Makoto gritted her teeth, the pain coursing through her veins as she looked right at Tsubaki in her eyes, both pain and confusion swimming around her eyes as Makoto simply raised her voice towards her red haired friend.

* * *

Makoto: **W-WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU TSUBAKI!**

Tsubaki: **M-Makoto… I'm sorry I…**

Makoto:** I forgive you for hurting me… But I want to know why are you trying to attack Noellie all of the sudden!?**

Tsubaki: **Makoto… You don't understand… she's the reason...the reason that…**

Makoto: **The reason for what!? She's our friend dammit! We shouldn't be fighting each other like this! Maybe have a spat or two but not until we raise our weapons to each other!**

Tsubaki: **YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND TSUBAKI! SHE'S THE REASON WHY JIN NII-SAMA'S GONE ROGUE!**

* * *

As soon as Tsubaki shouted out her reason, Makoto and Noel couldn't help but stare at her as Tsubaki dropped to her knees. This prompted both Makoto and Noel to quickly rush towards Tsubaki as friends would but Tsubaki immediately created distance between both her and the two once again. "**How...How can you not be on my side when she's been responsible for everything that has happened… unless… the reason for why you are a wanted criminal now is because of...**" Tsubaki said, her head trying to comprehend what was going on as Noel wanted to go towards Tsubaki but Makoto stopped her.

"**M-Makoto! I need to go and speak to Tsubaki. I just...**" Noel said as Makoto quietly shook her head before leaning towards Noel's ear. "**I know you want to Noellie… but just let me try and reason with her first. If you go there and she attacks you again then there's no point.**" Makoto said as Noel wanted to fight against that logic but looking right at Makoto's eyes, she knew that she was speaking the truth as she first looked to the ground before quietly nodding, trying to hide a tear that was about to come from her face.

"**What I did as a crime has nothing to do with Noellie Tsubaki. What I did is what I did… so why do you believe that Noel is the one responsible for what happened with Jin in the first place?**" Makoto said, knowing herself that Jin had ran away from NOL headquarters to pursue Ragna the Bloodedge but decided to not overplay that part too much, knowing how Tsubaki feels about the man as Tsubaki took a couple of calm deep breaths, Makoto making sure Noel was not in Tsubaki's field of view so she knew that Makoto was giving her full attention towards her.

"**It's because… she was Jin Nii-Sama's secretary that….that Jin Nii-Sama went rogue.**" Tsubaki said as Makoto couldn't believe what she was hearing. Did it really matter who Jin's secretary was in the first place? If he knew about Ragna the Bloodedge and had the chance to chase after him, Jin would have done so in the first place. "**Who told you that in the first place Tsubaki?**" Makoto asked as she had to just know who spoke the nonsense that caused her friend to go to a near berserk like state in the first place.

"**The person who told me that was… ****was...**" Tsubaki said but hesitated as she wondered if she should even say it as Makoto simply remained quiet, allowing Tsubaki to take her time to say what she wanted to say. "**Now Now Miss Yayoi. I am pretty sure telling sensitive information to wanted criminals goes against the very nature of the NOL don't you think?**" a voice spoke as Makoto froze hearing said voice, unable to believe that she was hearing the one voice she had hoped she had gotten away from as she slowly turned her head towards said direction.

"**You've got to be kidding me...**" Makoto muttered as the girls turned their heads towards the direction of the voice, each girl had a different reaction towards the person said voice came from. For Tsubaki, it was a slight shock but enough for her to get onto her feet in attention. For Noel, it was a sense of dread, of fear of the unknown as she took several steps away from said figure right into Makoto's arms. And for Makoto, she simply had a disgusted look on her face as she spoke first.

"**And what gives you the right to say that to my friend...Captain..**" Makoto said as Hazama made his appearance once more, his green hair and black outfit once again greeting Makoto's eyes once more as Hazama lifted his fedora off his head and placed it on his chest. "**I have the right to say so because you never answered my calls Miss Nanaya. Now what kind of friend just leaves her boss hanging like that? I am so hurt by that.**" Hazama said as Makoto knew the reason why he was even trying to be nice with her instead of lashing out.

"**Come on you two… Let's just leave this place and discuss things in a more private manner.**" Makoto said, standing both Noel and Tsubaki up only to make Hazama sigh in a disapproving manner. "**My My Miss Yayoi, to think that you would not just do your job as you are told. What a shame indeed.**" Hazama said as Tsubaki's eyes quickly widened as she separated herself from Noel and Makoto almost immediately hearing Hazama say that.

"**I...I was not trying to disobey orders Captain! I was trying to resolve things in a peaceful manner...but they escalated on me..**" Tsubaki said but Hazama shook his head. "**Then why are you listening to the words of a criminal in the first place? Are you telling me that you are allowing your friendship with said criminal and traitor cloud your judgement?**" Hazama continued as Makoto realized what Hazama was trying to do.

"**And what gives you the right to butt in our business captain? Can't a member of the NOL choose how they wish to resolve a problem or is force the only way allowed?**" Makoto questioned back, walking right towards Hazama with her left fist clenched as her right fist was still quite numb from the healing Ars Magus Noel used. Makoto did not want to fight, especially knowing her injured state but seeing Hazama's face...his shit eating grin. It was enough to send anger down her spine.

"**Oh no former Lieutenant. I am merely reminding good old Miss Yayoi about her duties in the Zeroth squadron. If her superior officer were to see her right now.. I would suspect that she would be heavily displeased with what she was witnessing.**" Hazama said as Makoto stopped approaching Hazama, the memory of her earlier encounter with Meifang resurfacing and reminding her of what an unpleasant time that was.

"**But other than that. It appears that I might have stepped a bit too much out of line. There are others watching after all and I so rudely interrupted the little show that they were getting.**" Hazama said as Makoto immediately became confused by that, her eyes looking all around as Noel and Tsubaki themselves began to look around the arena, both looking at different directions, Noel wondering where the people observing could be and Tsubaki to try and avoid looking at her friend's face.

"**Will you stop with your drivel and just leave us already Hazama.**" A voice chimed as just hearing it was enough to send a chill down Makoto's spine as she began to feverishly look around, amusing Hazama as he couldn't help but grin and walk away, vanishing to the girls in the process as like a ghost, he was no longer there. "**W-Who was that?!**" Noel questioned with some fear in her voice, her thoughts wondering what could that be as soon both her and Tsubaki saw Makoto's feet shaking in fear.

"**Still…**** despite the snake's meddling, I was able to observe so much.**" The voice continued as Makoto turned her head towards Noel and Tsubaki and saw a sight she did not want to see. Noel could see the growing horror on Makoto's face as she turned to see a blonde haired man wearing magenta clothing and an opera mask. Before she was able to react, his white gloved hand grabbed her by her neck and slowly lifted her into the air until she was at his head level.

"**NOEL!**" Makoto screamed as she ran towards the masked man she all too well as Relius Clover as immediately, Ignis got in her way. Makoto wanted to fight back, wanted to say something but just looking at Ignis… the moving automaton that he most likely had created, brought back more recent memories that simply left her paralyzed as she saw Tsubaki just standing where she was, watching Relius slowly strangle their friend with his grip with his gaze staring right at her.

"**It's simply amazing how ****you express yourself as a human being with emotions despite being a defective unit Number 12...**" Relius said as Makoto's eyes widened at that. This all but confirmed in her mind that Relius definitely had something to do with Noel… but what was it could he have done. As quick as he had grabbed Noel, he was quick to release her. "**But at the end of the day… even if you have the Azure, it doesn't change the fact that you are simply still a failure.**" Relius concluded, leaving Noel to cough as fear crawled up the young Vermillion girl's face as his gaze was soon focused right onto Makoto herself as she realized where he was looking at.

"**To think that I would get to meet you once again… Miss Nanaya.**" Relius said as Makoto felt every instinct to run at this point but before she could even react, Ignis was already in front of her. The fear in Makoto's bones prevented her from reacting in time as Ignis gave her a solid gut punch with her clawed fist, causing the squirrel girl to crumple down to her knees as Noel and Tsubaki were alarmed by this.

"**MAKOTO!**" both screamed as Noel summoned out Bolverk and despite the fear she felt, steeled herself to fight against the masked man if needed to. Tsubaki however felt conflicted between saving her friend or doing her duty as she simply dropped to her knees, indecision paralyzing her to where she sat as with a single gesture, Ignis got in Noel's way, blocking her from easily running towards the masked man as he walked slowly to his subject of interest.

"**It has been quite some time since we last meet Miss Nanaya… and I can see that your soul is as strong as ever.**" Relius commented as he didn't even try to raise a hand towards the girl, not that he needed to as when Makoto's eyes landed right onto his, she felt her body paralyze on itself like last time as she tried desperately to close her eyes as Relius grabbed her face, pressing his fingers on her cheeks in a cold and calculating manner. "**I was right...you are the one who got away from me...**" Relius commented as Makoto felt it all over again.

"**N-NO...STOP IT...NOT AGAIN.**" Makoto muttered as her body refused to put up a fight as Relius calmly stared right at her, his eyes prying into her deepest secrets once again as this time, he didn't need to pry to observe her soul directly. "**Your memories are the same as before...expect for the memories of this Sora Minakaze I managed to unearth… Amazing. Not even two trips between the boundary was enough to ****erode the quality of ****your soul.**" Relius commented as Makoto began to tear up once again, the pain and suffering she had to endure before being dragged up back to the surface in the most agonizing of manners.

"**Emotional Stimuli? I guess that is to be expected. ****Your soul remembers the first time I did this and if I remember right, I did extract some rather painful memories for you.**" Relius commented as Makoto wanted to scream so badly… but couldn't. "**But with all of this interference from the outside, I won't be able to observe you properly. Ignis, come over here and help me bring Miss Nanaya to the NOL holding cells.**" Relius said as this immediately sent Makoto into a terror as she desperately tried to will her body to move but her body stubbornly chose to remain a statue.

Soon, Ignis turned her back towards the blonde haired girl as Noel immediately tried to stop Relius only to be stopped by Tsubaki herself getting in her way. "**What are you doing Tsubaki!?**" Noel screamed as Tsubaki took a couple of deep breathes before raising the Izayoi up once more. "**My job Noel. Makoto is being arrested for her crime against the NOL and Colonel Relius is conducting that arrest. I cannot let you get in his way.**" Tsubaki said but Noel couldn't help but scream.

"**But the way he was talking to her… Don't you think that's weird Tsubaki! If he was trying to arrest her then why say all of that!**" Noel said, her hands trembling trying to hold Bolverk as tightly as she could as Tsubaki simply closed her eyes. "**Regardless of his language. I cannot let you interfere with this arrest… unless you want to add resisting against the NOL to your current crimes Noel.**" Tsubaki said, tightening her grip on the blade as Noel herself was left confused by the way Tsubaki was behaving in all of this.

As the two discussed this however, Makoto could already see Ignis approaching her, her clawed hands ready to grab her and whisk her away to whatever location Relius had planned for her. Relius clearly did not want her in the holding cells but in some laboratory where he could experiment on her like some lab rat. "**Do not worry Miss Nanaya. I made the mistake of being too hasty and tried to conclude breaking your soul as such. But do not worry. ****Once I have you to myself, I will take all of the time I will need to ensure I have the proper data this time.**" Relius said as Ignis was soon in front of her, a seal formed on her right palm as it raised it towards Makoto's face.

"**And when I do, you will make for such a magnificent Detonator.**" Relius concluded as Makoto could see the seal glow in front of her face as she didn't want this. She wanted to move but for whatever reason, whether it be the trauma of what she had to endure before or the memory of said trauma. Her body simply refused to move. All she wanted to do was simply scream at that moment, something...anything...but most importantly...someone as she mustered up the rest of her strength to scream out the one name that remained in her mind.

* * *

"_**SORA!**_"

* * *

Thunder soon greeted the sky as if to grant Makoto's wish as for an instant, Makoto could see a flash of white greet her eyes as Ignis's clawed hand was smacked high into the air before she and Relius themselves were pushed back a great distance away from her. Relius's gaze on her disappeared as she still felt weak, her body slowly dropping towards the ground only to be caught by a singular arm as the warmth of that arm was much better than the chill she felt from Relius's gaze.

Could It be? Was it really? Makoto at first felt a reluctance to look up and confirm who was holding her at that moment but knew she had to as she slowly raised her head, and opened her eyes. More tears soon emerged from her eyes as she saw the white hair with blond tips, the brilliant yellow left eye and blind white right eye and the face only she can recognize from her memories as she simply began to gag on her words, unable to believe that he was actually there.

"_**Stay here Makoto...I'll protect you.**_" the white haired man said as he laid her on the ground and slowly walked towards Relius, a motorcycle blade right on his back as he grabbed it by it's handle and revved it a few times as Makoto slowly sat up to get a better look at the back of the man she knew...and loved as Sora was really in front of her. He wasn't some figment of her imagination nor was he dead… he was really here and in front of her right now.

Sora however was not focused on that. As much as he was relieved to finally have found Makoto. His gaze was focused more right on the masked man, Relius Clover himself. "**Oh? And you must be Sora Minakaze himself.**" Relius commented as Noel and Tsubaki immediately locked their eyes right on the man, Noel looking at him confused but Tsubaki realizing that he was the same man who had stopped her from chasing after Jin Nii-san.

"**Colonel Relius! Be careful! he's a dangerous criminal!**" Tsubaki warned as Relius simply ignored her statement and continued to focus his gaze right at Sora, able to feel the anger and rage that was boiling within. "**Do you remember a girl named Alice?**" Sora said as Relius simply looked at him without showing any interest. "**No. I do not have a memory of such an insignificant soul.**" Relius said as suddenly Sora's soul began to flare up in his eyes as Sora himself couldn't help but feel angered by Relius half baked comment

"**In that case… How about I jog that stupid memory of yours so that you do remember Alice… THE BIG SISTER YOU TOOK AWAY FROM ME!**" Sora yelled as he tossed his broken knife right at Relius, making Relius summon Ignis as she smacked it high into the air. As she did however, Relius realized that Sora was no longer in front of him but in the air where the knife was supposed to be, prompting Ignis to raise her claws to block the attack as the ground cracked slightly, Sora shooting an angry glare right at Relius's way.

* * *

**As The Error...was finally reunited with The One**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING AT THIS VERY MOMENT!? Well now... Who knew that this would be the way we would begin our year now. Corona Virus has become officially recognized as a pandemic by the World Health Organization and as a result, countries are beginning to place very strict rules to restrict the spread of the virus. To those who are currently stuck at home because of quarantine, always make sure to keep your hands clean and also to not let yourself get bored because boredom is truly the most scary thing.**

**But in all seriousness... This will definitely be an interesting time in my life as a fanfiction artist. My work will not be impeded thankfully because unlike working, I can do this from the comfort of my home. So don't worry, You all will thankfully get your two chapters a month as usual. If anything does happen to me, I will make sure you guys are kept in the loop and well no surprise gets dropped on you guys. Regardless I promise to you all that I will stay safe during this pandemic season we seemed to have stumbled ourselves into.**

**SO WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT!? HOW WILL THE FIGHT AGAINST SORA MINAKAZE AND RELIUS CLOVER GO DOWN!? WILL SORA BE ABLE TO PROTECT MAKOTO FROM RELIUS!? AND WHAT ABOUT NOEL AND TSUBAKI!? HOW WILL THEY REACT TO THE FIGHT THAT WILL UNFOLD IN FRONT OF THEM!? Well… Read on if you want to find out.**

**P.S: If you are curious about the girl named Alice, I would recommend reading Stories of the fated wind to find out who she was. It was my first story and I am still a bit embarrassed by it's quality but I won't redo it and leave it the way it is as a way to show my journey as a fanfiction artist. It's not too necessary to know but if you curious about the person named Alice, that is where I would recommend going.**


	25. Canon 24: Storm Of The Heart

(A New Canon has Begun. Let us see what is going to happen next shall we?)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 24

Previously on Canon Distortion...

Makoto Nanaya, Formerly of the NOL Intelligence department and currently a wanted criminal has had a busy day. From meeting old friends to fighting others all she wanted to do was simply meet up with Noel and hopefully help get her out of the city so she could search for her boyfriend. Unfortunately that was interrupted when she happened to meet Noel and her other friend Tsubaki having a fight to the death. Though she broke the fight, it didn't take long for trouble to come rushing to her once again in the form of Relius Clover and Hazama. But when her troubles reached her peek, Sora managed to arrive at just the nick of time...

And Now, the continuation of Canon Distortion.

* * *

'_**What the hell is going on here?**_' Sora thought, his foot slammed on top of the giant doll in front of him. He had so many questions as to what was going on in front of him. All he wanted to do was find Makoto. He found her, but surrounding her was Noel and Tsubaki who looked like they were engaged in a battle to the death, the green haired man who he ran away from lunch from and now the masked freak who basically started the mess of his life in the first place. He then felt the giant automaton push Sora off her as he slid on the ground, recovering with his hand before quickly whipping out the Rev Blade behind his back.

As he did so, time slowed down. His mind racing back to just a few minutes ago before he came over here and was currently fighting against his nemesis. He was simply wondering around the city, using any criminal contacts he had to try and locate Makoto as soon as possible. It was then he started to hear gunshots and the sound of metal clashing with each other that prompted him to come over here in the first place.

He turned his head towards Makoto, seeing her look frozen for some reason as Makoto herself was simply staring right at Sora, unable to believe that he was really here at this moment. Sora then noticed Tsubaki start to run away for some reason with Noel following her as Makoto looked back and saw her friends running away. "**Go and follow them Makoto. I promise that I will catch up later.**" Sora said, his heart still fearful over the fact that Makoto might have forgotten him as Makoto recomposed herself and soon left, leaving Sora with both the green haired man and the masked freak in front of him.

"**Hazama. While I appreciate your presence here, I would request that you leave me alone with The Error for now.**" Relius said as Hazama looked at his friend with a look of annoyance. "**Of course... if you would excuse me.**" Hazama said as he simply walked away from the sight. "**Besides, I already saw what I wanted to see so I will just leave you with your...mess**" Hazama said as Relius simply ignored him, his focus completely on Sora as he could feel the young man's killing intent pointed at him.

"**I believe this is the first time we have met am I wrong? So why did you mention the girl known as Alice?**" Relius said, feigning ignorance as while she was a failure, Alice herself proved useful in many other ways as Relius could see the anger slowly build up in Sora's eyes, his hand clutching onto the Rev Blade as he tightly revved it with ferocity. "**Why should I even tell you? If you can forget her why should I even waste my breath explaining who she was to you.**" Sora said with a bluntness in his voice that Relius was able to feel.

"**Besides... even if today's not the day I kill you... At least for today I cam make sure you remember me properly.**" Sora said, Revving the Rev Blade once again before clicking the brake and revving from there. "**ENHANCED GEAR! DISTORTION GEAR!**" The rev blade chimed as Relius's interest was piqued instead of him becoming fearful as Sora released his grip on the brake. "**DISTORTION FINISH!**" The blade shouted as Sora raised it high up in the air.

"**So you better prepare yourself...YOU MASKED FREAK!**" Sora yelled, slamming the blade down with force, releasing out the seithr it had gathered in a singular motion. Sora didn't feel the need to scream out a move at that moment, his focus and anger were all focused into making sure that Relius will never forget him even if he wanted to as Ignis came between the massive wave of seithr rushing towards her and her master.

Relius immediately summoned out a gear like hand from his coat when he realized that Ignis was being flung towards him in rapid speed, causing the two to slide on the ground as Ignis quickly turned around and wrapped her master around her arms to take the full impact of the attack as Relius was already analyzing the attack that had just nearly ended his life with a calm like expression on his face.

"**To think that there is a person who is capable of generating such pressure and release it out all at once. And to do so with Seithr of all things... most interesting.**" Relius said, his face unfazed by the attack delivered to him as he tapped Ignis to vanish and reappear behind him as he gently landed on his feet. As he did so, he couldn't help but notice that Sora was gone yet again, similar to what happened earlier as Relius instinctively formed a gear arm to block Sora's attempt at a slice right for his midsection.

"**It appears you have something similar to a speed increasing ars magus... but what is interesting is that it's rather instantaneous.**" Relius commented as Sora ignored the masked man's words, not intending to exchange any words and began to swing his sword as hard as possible, making sure each time he did, Relius would feel the weight of each blow threaten to cause his legs to buckle as even with one hand and the relatively short size of the blade, Relius was impressed by the strength Sora had managed to put in each blow.

"**And for a person lacking an arm, you swing as if you were gripping a two handed sword... that tells me you have at least been training yourself to wield your weapon with just a singular arm for a while now.**" Relius noted, even in the head of battle, his tendency to note what his opponent was doing was still present as he couldn't help but begin to stare at the Rev Blade, wondering how it works as he realized there was other functions about the blade that had yet to reveal itself to him.

"**Is your plan for me to just run your mouth while you hope to find a weak spot that you can exploit? Now that I remember right, you have always liked to run your stupid mouth.**" Sora said, spitting venom right at Relius's direction as Relius couldn't help but be surprised by that. "**Such anger for one person...and it's me of all people. Most interesting. I would like to observe your soul very carefully...**" Relius replied as Ignis came by his side.

"**Please do not harm him badly Ignis. I wish to bring him along with Miss Nanaya to my lab for experiments.**" Relius said as something popped in Sora's mind as he could feel his blood boil at that moment, his anger wanting to release as he switched the Rev Blade into it's Arm mode, amusing Relius even more as without hesitation Sora attached it back at his stump. "**Maybe I should make sure that scrap metal of yours sends you back to hell instead!**" Sora yelled as he charged, throwing a punch right at Relius's face which Ignis intercepted with her claws.

As she did, Relius couldn't help but peer a bit, trying to do what he did to so many others before with his eyes but when he did so with Sora, his eyes couldn't help but feel like they were burning like crazy as he stumbled a bit, keeping his composure in the process. '**The sensation my eyes felt peering his soul...You are starting to pique my interest more and more. Sora Minakaze.**' Relius thought as Sora grabbed Ignish with the Rev arm and slowly began to lift her up into the air with it.

'_**Shit! This junk's freaking heavy!**_' Sora thought, only able to get her feet off the ground but not fling her into the air as he used the small amount of lift he got to deliver a powerful kick to where the stomach would be, sending her flying towards the railing, exposing Relius for a bit as Sora did not relent and pressed the advantage that had been given to him at that moment. Relius tried to call Ignis back but soon saw a hand reach out towards his, forcing him to pull back and summon a geared hand to try and intercept the attack only for said hand to whiff completely.

"**GET OUT OF MY WAY!**" Sora yelled, delivering a kick right at the geared hand, smashing it to the side and forcing it out of Relius's coat. This mildly surprised the man as he made manifest a couple of gears to try and slam them right into Sora. Sora at that moment dislocated the Rev Arm and tossed it right at Relius's face, causing him to deflect it instinctively into the air. He realized what he had done and made manifest a couple of geared hands to try and block the next attack he presumed was from the sky.

For a brief period, nothing happened. Then a painful sensation rocked him in his solar plexuses, causing him to stagger as Sora had slipped his next punch which was a gut punch right through the metal hands. It was at that moment Ignis came back to life and tried to impale Sora with it's massive claws only for Sora to now vanish into the air and reattach the Rev Arm. As he did this, Relius couldn't help but be amused by the speed he was going, zipping across the battlefield rapidly.

'**Hmmm… now that I have seen him do it twice, it's time I try to deduce the nature of his drive.**' Relius thought as he signaled Ignis and she immediately stopped her next attack, alarming Sora as he heard the sound cue of a distortion being triggered. '_**A distortion? When I can see it coming?**_' Sora thought but then became alarmed when he heard a second distortion drive coming behind him as he turned around to see Ignis come charging towards him with a gigantic ball of light.

To Sora, it seemed that Relius was going to use two Distortions at once to try and hit him for sure, but Relius was less interested in making sure his attack did land. He simply wanted to witness Sora's drive carefully with his own eyes, to see what it was really doing for his own interest as he commanded Ignis to charge forward as if she was going to unleash a distortion. Sora immediately turned his back to Relius, baited by Relius perfectly as he summoned a gigantic gear and sent it right for Sora, threatening to grind him several times in the process.

In Relius's mind. It would take milliseconds for anybody to react, even if they had speed enhancements on them. By diverting their focus away from the real attack, you add in additional seconds to a person's reaction time. This would explain why suddenly tossing something like a ball at someone could result in the person failing to catch it in the first place. '**Now show me Mr Minakaze… is your drive really just...**'

Before Relius could even finish his thought, his eyes bared witness to something truly amazing. In the milliseconds he had summoned his point blank distortion Drive, Sora had magically transformed the Rev arm back to the Rev Blade to block the attack, his teeth gritting as several gears clashed with the metal of the Rev Blade. Relius couldn't help but be amazed as Sora forced the gear away, taking a few minutes to recover from the experience he had while not letting his guard down.

"**Amazing… to think that Phenomena Intervention could be bent to a single individual's will.**" Relius commented as Sora couldn't help but raise his eyebrow at that. "**Phenomena Intervention? Are you talking about my drive?**" Sora questioned as Relius couldn't help but shake his head. "**Impossible...for such a thing to occur, one must be a being of immense power.**" Relius commented as Sora couldn't help but be annoyed, not because Relius was annoying him but because Relius was behaving the way he did all those years back.

"**Shut up you masked asshole. As if I care about your talk right now. Are you going to continue fighting or are you too amazed with your research to even care right now.**" Sora said, his anger growing as Relius stared right at the man, his eyes able to see his soul glowing like the flames of hell itself, swallowed by anger as he was starting to make sense of things, things not even Sora understood. "**I see now… no wonder you are able to use such power.**" Relius said as Sora simply closed his eyes in annoyance, unable to take the crap he was hearing at this point.

"**I don't care what kind of shit you're trying to pawn off to me. But you listen and you listen well. I don't care what happens to you next. Even if it means becoming a wanted criminal of the NOL officially. I am taking you down.**" Sora said, his soul brimming with hatred as Relius wanted to at that moment observe him much closer. But unfortunately, the situation presented to him was not one he could take advantage of easily.

"**You can say whatever you want. I do not care. But your soul… the way your soul is briming right now… It simply warrants a much closer observation now.**" Relius said as Sora shook his head at that. "**Observation huh… then come closer...I DARE YOU.**" Sora said, stabbing the Rev Blade on the ground and revving it with force. As he did, the blade began to open it's vents. "**REVERSE FLOW ACTIVE!**" The blade yelled as Relius was able to see Seithr but more importantly, portions of his soul flow into the blade itself, as if he was giving his soul to the blade.

'**Is he doing so without knowing? Most interesting. I wish to investigate this further but I fear what would happen if I allow this to proceed any further.**' Relius thought as he should end this now… but his curiosity over what he is currently witnessing override his desire to retreat for now. '**I must make sure the memory of his soul is engrained into my own eyes. So show me Sora Minakaze. Show me the weight of your soul!**' Relius thought, raising his hands and creating multiple gears at several spots, forcing them to converge to where Sora was standing as Sora ripped the Rev Blade off the ground with force, slamming the edge of his blade right at one of the gears and causing a chain effect of knocking each and every single one sent after him away.

"**I AM GOING TO SEND YOU TO HELL!**" Sora screamed as he revved the Rev Blade. "**ENHANCED GEAR! DISTORTION GEAR!**" At that moment, Sora was about to rev to the Astral Gear but soon realized that if he did it now in an area with multiple airships, he might accidentally drain all of the seithr that powers those airships and potentially send them crashing down to the heavy seithr below.

'_**Dammit!**_' Sora thought as he settled with the Distortion gear, him still unaware of just how far using an Astral heat with the Rev Blade will drain Seithr from. Sora soon charged forward, diving with his whole body forward as Ignis manifested herself in front of Sora, raising her claws to block Sora's next attack as Sora himself was determined to make sure this attack will land, regardless of what happens next as he clicked the brake handle to engage the gear. "**ENHANCED DISTORTION FINISH!**"

"**NOTHING WILL STAND IN MY WAY! SO GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY!**" Sora yelled, raising his blade ready to do the same attack he did to Relius prior as he now could feel his soul screaming, telling him to yell out it's name as he continued to run towards Ignis only to suddenly phase through her, surprising the automaton and amazing Relius as he could see Sora slash his blade right towards his face at point blank range.

"_**GEIRU**__** BUREDO**_**!**" Sora yelled, slashing down as a massive wave of seithr like wind came crashing down on his body, slamming Relius with a force that he could have not expected was possible. At the same time, Relius had retaliated with a counter attack as while he deduced that Sora was manipulating Phenomena Intervention somehow, it seemed that he was only able to do it for himself and thus Relius still had free will to do anything he wished.

That wish was a fist right into Sora's arm, cushioning the blow that the enhanced Distortion could have had on his body if it was full force as both men were blown back by the sheer force of the attack, Sora slamming his entire body onto a lamp post and causing it to crumble down in the process and relius all the way to a fountain where the water splashed upwards when his body came in contact with it. The attack itself was enough to carve the land in half as the walkway now had a visible gash right in the middle and several ripple like patterns were present on the ground.

Sora was first to recover, having to support himself standing up by using the Rev Blade itself. While he was not in particularly bad shape, the blast of the attack was enough to take him off his feet and knock out some of the wind that was in him. "**Was...Was that enough for you bastard?**" Sora questioned as he stared at Relius's direction. His eyes not letting his prey away from his sight as he was determined to make sure he was unable to stand up ever as he slowly approached where Relius was.

As Sora slowly approached, Relius remained still on the rubble he laid on. "**So this is the power of your soul hmm… such potential indeed.**" Relius commented, prompting Sora to immediately prep the Rev Blade for another attack as he did not hesitate to unleash another Distortion Drive right at the man to try and finish him off. As he raised his blade, something stopped him immediately as he felt something dig inside him, as if it was trying to bury itself within his body.

"**Now normally this will be where I would capture you and bring you back to my laboratory… but you have made that almost impossible now.**" Relius said, raising his head and revealing to Sora something his mind could never forget ever since he saw them. Relius's mask at this point had been completely shattered, unable to take the impact of the distortion head on as blood dripped from the blond haired man's forehead but that was not what Sora was focused on.

It was his eyes… what is hidden beneath the mask. What laid under the mask was not a normal human eye but glowing magenta eyes that shined at the irises. Sora wanted to move but couldn't as Relius continued to stare him down, glaring at him with interest as he slowly approached him. "**The way your soul becomes one with the seithr around you… most interesting indeed.**" Relius commented as Ignis simply remained still, not responding as Sora tried to keep himself standing but his knees suddenly gave out.

"**You feel it do you… the way your chest feels heavy...as if something is burying itself onto you.**" Relius said as Sora simply raised his head in defiance, glaring at the man as Relius simply continued to walk forward. "**What the hell is this? Magic?**" Sora questioned as he was quick to realize that ars magus on the scale like this while possible, would not be the cause of the glowing magenta in Relius's eyes as he knelt down in front of Sora and grabbed him by his neck.

"**Your soul is so vast… brimming with potential… Now let me see further.**" Relius commented as Sora could feel Relius start to dig into his head, like all those years ago as memories of being strapped onto a gurney table and having the man keep staring at him, all while he did things that he said were to stimulate the soul began to resurface as Relius could see those same memories. "**I see now… so you have experienced this before… and I conducted it as well… most interesting.**" Relius commented as Sora gritted his teeth, the pain unbearable but he knew not to show weakness at that moment.

"**It also appears that your soul has developed greatly over the years… the presence of Human stimuli and various emotional stress points… is that the source of your development?**" Relius continued as he glimpsed and could see that Sora was starting to resist his techniques, his soul fighting back as the image of Makoto Nanaya peered through his soul. And not just her, various people Relius did not recognize as well made their appearance in the corner's of Sora's memories as a pink haired woman made her appearance last, besides Makoto Nanaya as Relius immediately recognized her.

"**Oh… I see now.**" Relius commented, his attention heavily drawn towards Sora at this point as Sora himself could feel his body becoming weak for some reason, the strength he had was being sapped right out of him as Relius's eyes would not stop, and won't stop until he had seen everything. "**GET OUT...OF MY HEAD!**" Sora screamed as Relius found his observation being interrupted as Sora soon found the willpower to swing the punch he had been trying to do, slamming Relius at his chin and releasing his grasp on his body, suddenly feeling a wind of exhaustion hit him.

Relius was simply unfazed by this, wiping the blood at the corner of his mouth. "**While I did manage to peer through a glimpse of your soul… it appears that I will need to weaken you more the next time I wish to observe your soul.**" Relius commented as Sora tried to stand up but the exhaustion he felt was too much as he collapsed to his back in the process. "**How about we continue this at another time… Sora Minakaze.**" Relius said as Sora was only able to get a glimpse of a dark mass swirling in front of Relius as he had a hand over his eyes before he walked through the portal with Ignis in tow.

As soon as Relius left, the feeling Sora had on his chest immediately left as Sora couldn't help but gasp for air at that moment, as if a fish that was brought out of the water and tossed back in. As soon as that feeling subsided, Sora slowly got up to his feet, the exhaustion he had felt prior going away. '_**Looks like if I want to take him out… I will have to deal with those eyes of his at some point.**_' Sora thought, biting his lip in the process as he tried to get his bearings at that moment.

"_**Right… now that Relius has left all that is left is… Makoto.**_" Sora said as he was not exactly thrilled at the idea of meeting up with Makoto again. Sure in his heart he wanted to meet her so desperately, he wanted to see her again after a few years of not doing so. Yet at the same time, with the whole memory wiping thing happening in his life right now he did not know how she was going to respond when she saw him. It was for this specific reason he replied back to her in English rather than Japanese.

'_**Can...can I really see her right now? Am I...really ready to face the worst possibility?**_' Sora thought as he felt the fear in his heart simply paralyze him as he wondered what he should do at this very moment, what can he do and how he should do it. "_**Even if...Even if she's forgotten about me...I have to at least see it through.**_" Sora thought out loud as he began to make his way towards where he had seen Makoto run towards as his heart was racing with nervousness, slamming onto his chest in the process.

* * *

With each step he took, more questions began to ring in his mind. What should be his first words to her when they meet again? Should he play it safe and use English once again or risk it all and speak to her in Japanese? Just how much is he allowed is he going to be allowed to express himself to her and finally what will he do if she does reject him? Does he try to play it cool and walk it all away, pretending like she didn't exist or even try to persuade her that she does know him like everyone else.

The more he thought about it, the more he couldn't help but reflect on his current situation and the people he had been meeting with. He remembered the days that he would have to spend with Pikaka, Derrick and Neko, trying to convince them that they remember who he was, how he would make frequent visits to the shop, making sure to show his face everyday to them so that they don't forget what he looked like, asking Caroline to help check their memories with stuff he has no clue on how they worked.

Should he do the same with Makoto if the worst case scenario had come to pass? Is it even worth it at this point? A feeling began to swell up inside him as he couldn't help but slow down his walking, taking his time to reach Makoto as more doubt began to swim in his mind. Soon he caught what he was doing, slapping himself in the face to snap himself out of the self doubt that was in him. "_**Dammit Sora… You can't be doubting your resolve now… not after you decide to see her in the first place.**_" Sora said, reminding himself that his negativity was not helping.

And the slap he gave himself could have not come at a better time as soon he face to face with Makoto Nanaya once more, seeing her seated on a bench, stroking the hair of what appeared to be Noel who had fallen asleep with tears in her eyes. Sora stopped walking for a moment, taking his time to recompose himself as he readied his resolve for what was to come next. Regardless of whether or not she remembered him or didn't, Sora was determined to at least meet with her face to face.

"**So… How is Noel doing?**" Sora said, getting Makoto's attention as he walked towards a lamp post, allowing the light to illuminate him as he looked at her with a normal look. He didn't know how he should act at this point but he couldn't help but just try to play safe as he didn't want to jump to conclusions. "**Well… I guess looking from here, I can tell she's had a bit of a rough time… with whatever is going on in her life.**" Sora continued, Makoto remaining silent as Sora looked away for a bit, not sure if he should keep his eyes on her or not.

The silence was unbearable. It felt like she was simply staring at him and he was waiting for the inevitable to happen. He kept his eyes closed, thinking that would help to lessen the blow that was coming his way but he knew that it was inevitable. He was going to have to face her directly and whether he liked it or not, the truth was going to come his way. "**Makoto I...**" Before he could even say a word, a pair of hands grabbed him by the back of his head and pulled him closer to a pair of lips.

* * *

The action caught Sora completely off guard as his eyes slowly opened to see Makoto, tears in her eyes tearfully kissing him as they parted for a moment. Soon they returned to immediately kissing each other once again as their lips did not part this time, their tongues intertwined in a romantic manner as the desperation both felt for each other immediately evapourated on each other, their hands not wanting to release from each other as Makoto kept her hands firmly on Sora's neck and back while Sora did the same with just his one arm tenderly holding Makoto in the hips as they finally parted, their eyes slowly about to tear up as the emotional stimuli of seeing each other was proving too much for the both of them to handle.

"_**What...What took you so long Sora?**_" Makoto said, trying to hold back the tears in her voice as Sora sniffed a little, trying to stiffle his own tears in the process. "_**Sorry Makoto… Life has been finding ways to keep me busy that's all.**_" Sora replied, the two of them feeling their emotions reach an all time high as they continued to hug each other affectionately. While life had been cruel to them so far… there was one thing that the two were simply glad had not changed.

* * *

**...The two had managed to reunite with each other… and two broken hearts were now one once more...**

* * *

_**Geiru Buredo**_: Gale Blade

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING!? Well… Looks like we have entered into a Pandemic folks. While I don't specialize in the field of Medicine, I do specialize in the field of writing. Thus I hope that while we live in these trying times, I can continue to deliver to everyone stories that people can enjoy whether they are stuck at home or having to endure working away from the safety of home.**

**SO WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT!? WHAT IS GOING TO BE SORA AND MAKOTO'S PLAN NOW!? JUST WHAT DOES THE WORLD HAVE PLANNED FOR OUR TWO HEROES!? AND HOW WILL THE TWO FIGHT AGAINST WHAT THE WORLD PLANS TO GIVE THEM!? Well… in order to find out more, You will have to wait for the next chapter to come out to find out more.**


	26. Canon 25: Reunited Once More

(A new Canon has arrived and our leads have finally reunited. Just what will happen from here? let's find out.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 25

Sora waited patiently on the bench, Noel resting on his shoulder. The Rev Blade itself was resting itself on his leg. He was waiting for Makoto to come back from a nearby convenience store to grab some alcohol for him to drink. He had been spending the whole day running around and had no time to grab something to drink. He would like to just walk up to a drink machine and grab a drink from there but getting drunk on the job is not a priority.

"_**Sorry I took so long.**_" Makoto said as soon as she came into view, holding a medium sized bottle of what looked to be Whiskey. "_**This was the smallest whiskey they had in the store... that I had to steal because I am wanted after all.**_" Makoto continued as she sat down, Sora allowing Makoto to lift Noel's head and placing it on her shoulder as Sora sat next to her. "_**It's alright. I am just happy to see you again.**_" Sora said, kissing Makoto as soon as she turned her head around to face him.

"_**Mou. You really do miss me huh.**_" Makoto complained in a soft voice, not minding the attention she was receiving as she was simply glad that he was here and real. "_**I...I really thought that you...You were gone.**_" Makoto said softly, holding the whiskey bottle in her hand as she pulled out two plastic cups she stole with the whiskey and poured out a couple for the two of them. "_**I would give you your cup, but I don't think you can hug me while hold the cup at the same time with just one hand.**_" Makoto teased as Sora softly smiled.

"_**Give me a second.**_" Sora simply said as Makoto noticed Sora reaching out for his weapon, alarming her for a bit as she thought he would balance the cup on the sword only to express relief when Sora transformed the Rev Blade into it's Arm form. Her relief then turned into excitement as she realized what she had just witnessed. "_**Woah!... You have a transforming arm!?**_" Makoto said, excited like a little school girl as she quickly pulled the Rev Arm towards her to get a closer look.

"_**It looks so real... and it looks so cool too.**_" Makoto said, her eyes glued at her boyfriend's cool looking new prosthetic arm. "_**Well.. the arm's more of a side thing I got. I mainly got it for the sword.**_" Sora said with honesty in his voice as Makoto giggled at that. "_**That does sound like you. You were pretty content living with just one arm after all.**_" Makoto said as Sora scratched his head at that comment. "_**Geez... and also can you stop tugging on the Rev Arm, it kinda hurts when you do that.**_" Sora commented as Makoto stopped at that comment.

"_**Now. A toast to our reunion?**_" Sora asked as Makoto simply smiled and finally gave Sora his cup of whiskey. "_**To the two of us.**_" Makoto toasted, clinking their cups and drinking their respective drinks within a single shot. "_**Well Well Well. Makoto Nanaya's able to handle her liquor now. Does this mean that you are one step closer to becoming an alcoholic?**_" Sora teased as Makoto couldn't help but gloom at that.

"_**To be honest... I may already have become quite alcoholic as much as I want to disagree with that comment.**_" Makoto said as Sora couldn't help but sweat at the comment she gave. "_**I...I see... Well at least you look healthy.**_" Sora said as Makoto glowed hearing that. "_**Really?! Oh thank god. I was so worried about becoming a raging alcoholic I doubled my exercise regime and even started looking into strongman workouts to combat the side effects of alcoholism.**_" Makoto said as this caused Sora to worry even more.

"_**That's good to hear. Just don't overwork yourself till you turn yourself into a brick wall of muscle and lose all of your boob size because of it.**_" Sora said as Makoto turned bright red hearing that and subconsciously covered her boobs hearing that. "_**D-Don't say something like that Sora you idiot!**_" Makoto said, her face flushed red as Sora couldn't help but smile at that. "_**It's really nice to see you again like this.**_" Sora said, a smile slowly growing on his face as Makoto couldn't help but smile back.

"_**Yeah. it's good to see you too.**_" Makoto continued as they both leaned in for another kiss, as if to make up for the lost time that they had lost not kissing each other as much as they should have. "_**Any more long distance and I think we would need the full course to make things right with each other.**_" Sora joked as Makoto couldn't help but blush at that. "_**The full course huh... Please don't make it sound like we are going to become super horny in the future just by not spending time with each other.**_" Makoto said as Sora chuckled.

"_**Well.. there is a time and place for things... And I don't think Sex is that right now.**_" Sora said as soon they relaxed on the bench, Sora simply slinging his right arm over Makoto's shoulder and placing her head on his chest, allowing her to comfortably hug him as she nodded her head. "_**As much as I want to do that with you right now... I agree. Right now, I think there is stuff that we need to confirm with each other before we decide what to do next.**_" Makoto said as soon, the couple got serious with each other, both knowing how important it is to trade information with each other to ensure the other was updated with their current situation.

"_**So I know that you are wanted by the NOL for treason. Can you let me know the specifics on that treason charge?**_" Sora asked as Makoto simply nodded her head. "_**My former boss sent me down to Ibukido to investigate some stuff and I found out that they were linked with some shady stuff... especially Relius Clover. I didn't report back to them so that's why I am wanted right now.**_" Makoto said, summarizing her experience as Sora tried to keep a straight face, not letting any mention of the masked freak derail his focus on analyzing the current situation.

"_**Is that all? I mean... how do you still even remember me? Jin, Tsubaki and even Hunter have forgotten about me and you're the only one who has not. Granted I am glad you haven't and I would prefer it that way.**_" Sora said as he could see Makoto visibly flinch hearing that. Makoto herself was preparing herself to tell Sora the truth but did not expect it come so soon as she took a couple of deep breaths to ensure she was ready for what was to come next.

"_**If I can be honest Sora... I...I did forget about you.**_" Makoto said, alarming Sora as he looked at her with surprise on his face. "_**If...If you did... then how...**_" Sora stuttered, trying to register what she was saying as Makoto closed her eyes, understanding the confusion on his face. "_**It's a bit of a long story... but I will try my best to summarize everything... just promise me that you will try your best to follow my conversation?**_" Makoto said as Sora paused for a bit before silently nodding his head, his interest now fully grabbed by Makoto.

"_**Right...So...when I was in the Ibukido ruins...I discovered the Ibukido cauldron and for reasons I am still trying to figure out, I just blacked out. When I came to... I found myself not in the Ibukido ruins... but in Kagutsuchi, a different Kagutsuchi.**_" Makoto explained, deciding to leave a small pause to see how Sora would react as his eyes were a bit wide from the information that was given to him. "_**So... you are trying to tell me, that you somehow went to an alternate timeline?**_" Sora said, Makoto glad that she was able to explain that to him.

"_**Well...I'm glad you at least understood the easiest part...**_" Makoto said as Sora's eyes widened at that. "_**The easiest part? What do you mean the easiest part?**_" Sora said as Makoto simply nodded her head. "_**I will try to explain the rest of my adventure to you... but forgive me if it becomes much more complicated than it really sounds. So try to stop me when you do get lost instead of just listening and nodding your head along.**_" Makoto asked as Sora swallowed some saliva that had built up before nodding his head.

"_**I will try my best... just go on.**_" Sora said as Makoto cleared her throat, ready to continue. "_**So in this Kagutsuchi... It turned on that this was a Kagutsuchi that Noel...did not exist.**_" as soon as she said that, Sora immediately raised his hand, like a student wanting an answer to a question from their teacher. "_**When you mean does not exist, you mean that she was dead right?**_" Sora questioned as Makoto simply shook her head. "_**Nope... does not exist in this case means that she never existed in that timeline... Just like how your current situation is actually now that I think about it.**_" Makoto realized as Sora shook his head, gesturing for Makoto to continue.

"_**Anyways... after I stumbled my way into this new timeline...World...let's just call it world for now. I tried to find a way back. There were people who knew me like Tsubaki and Jin but at the same time... they felt different from the people I actually knew. Like Tsubaki was less.. psychotic than she is now... and Jin...Jin was strangely nice too...**_" Makoto said as she shook her head, realizing that she was diverting away from the conversation.

"_**Anyways... after reaching the Kagutsuchi cauldron, I met... Colonel Relius Clover.**_" The moment she mentioned the masked man's name, she could see the expression on Sora's face visibly change as it had went from confusion to that of anger as the hand that was on her shoulder tightened a bit as Sora simply nodded his head, beckoning for her to continue as she could tell he was trying to brace himself for something... as if he knew Relius himself.

"_**...**__**He...He got his hands on me... and started trying to bury his thoughts into my head. He...dug...dug...and dug into my mind... as if he was violating me in the process.**_" Makoto said, even thinking of the event was enough to make her feel sick to her stomach as the hand on her shoulder became even more tense. "_**He...He brought up memories... memories of which I wish would stay buried for the rest of my life. But he forcibly made me relieve those memories... made me suffer in the process... and...and broke me in the process...**_" Makoto said as she dropped the now empty cup that had the whiskey inside it and simply hugged Sora at this point, Sora now able to see the pain on Makoto's face as she was about to cry.

"_**He...He made me remember things... Things I am not proud off, things I tried so hard to forget but now can't. He forced me to face the ugliest version of myself.. all so he could break me and use me for whatever he wanted... He...He...**_" Makoto wanted to continue but felt her words were being choked by the tears that were starting to come out of her eyes. The memories she had tried to bury, the experience of having them forcibly pulled out of her brain just to be examined by a man who felt so cold was too much even for a woman like her.

Sora knew at this point, Makoto needed a quick breather and simply hugged her back, allowing her head to lay itself on his chest. At this point, the tears Makoto tried to hold back began to emerge like a stream as the pain she felt... the anguish she endured... and the anxiety she experienced, all of it came out as her tears would not stop. She knew she was stronger than this... but does strength even matter in the face of the unknown? In the face of someone who simply prodded their way in her head without her permission?

"_**It was terrifying Sora... it felt like... all the secrets I had kept deep inside were being forcibly revealed against my will.. Relius... That masked freak... made me feel so insignificant... so weak... so useless... I wanted to kill myself.**_" Makoto said, all the emotions she had felt in the past few days came rushing out of her. She didn't care if it meant looking weak in front of her boyfriend, she was in safe hands, knowing that Sora would not do such things to her... a sense of safety she did not get from the masked freak.

"_**I...I lost everything... but then... he dug even deeper and he made me remember things... things that I had thought never existed, memories that I made that...should have been gone.**_" Makoto continued as Sora realized where she was going with this as she looked at him in the eyes. "_**Yes... that's right. I was starting to remember you... remember the times that we had spent with each other... and our relationship.**_" Makoto said as her hand soon reached out and pried the tightening hand on her shoulder into her own hands.

"_**And when I did... I felt strong enough to fight back against him... and as soon as that happened, a small bunny lolita girl then saved me and helped me get back to this world... and that's how I managed to remember you Sora.**_" Makoto said as she pressed her forehead on his, allowing her breaths to hit his mouth as she tried even harder to stiffle her tears as Sora soon helped her to wipe her tears away as she smiled at the tenderness she was experiencing.

"_**I never thought I would miss you as much as I do right now Sora... I'm so sorry for forgetting you like that...**_" Makoto said as Sora felt a sense of guilt build up in Makoto. He guessed that Makoto deep inside felt bad for betraying Sora like the way she did... for forgetting him as if he was nothing. Even if it was against her will, the fact that she even forget him in the first place was enough to make her feel guilty in the first place.

"_**I**__**t's alright Makoto... I forgive you.**_" Sora said softly as Makoto parted her forehead from his and looked at him in the eyes. "_**And now that I see you...and can feel you with my hands... I now know that my memories of you are truly real... that you are truly here... breathing in front of me right now.**_" Makoto said as she closed her eyes, relief now washing over her as Sora softly smiled and kissed her on the forehead.

"_**We made a promise didn't we? That no matter how much the world tries to pry us away from each other, we will always find a way to meet back up with each other.**_" Sora said as Makoto smiled hearing that as she couldn't help but nod her head happily at that. "_**I'm still glad that you remember that promise even after all these years**_." Makoto said as Sora scratched his head. "_**Well... it's a promise that I will never forget.**_" Sora said lightening the mood a little bit more as they soon drank a bit more whiskey to relax their thoughts so they would be able to figure out their next plan.

"_**So... Now that we both have fulfilled our main goals of meeting up with each other... What should we do now?**_" Sora asked as Makoto thought about it. She could ask Sora to tag along with her as she looked at the sleeping Noel beside her... but the more important question they needed to find out was why the gods are now saying that Sora should not exist. "_**If I can be honest... there are two ways I can see us going with this.**_" Makoto said in order to get Sora's attention as she found Sora's input in this to be very important.

* * *

Makoto: _**The first way would be for us to stick together for now and try to get Noellie to safety... the NOL are after her for some reason and I don't feel she's safe here now.**_

Sora_**: That's understandable, with more hands to protect her, she will at least be more safe for the time being.**_

Makoto:_** The other method... is for us to split up for the time being.**_

Sora: _**Split up? What do you mean by that? Do you have a lead or something like that?**_

Makoto:_** Maybe not a lead to be specific, but I do think that there is a person who might be able to help explain more things to you... things about your current situation that you should definitely talk to. The only problem is that I don't know how to contact her in the first place.**_

* * *

Sora couldn't help but become confused by the suggestion that his girlfriend was giving out in the first place but at the same time if this person really did have solutions to his current problem then he should take this opportunity to try and talk to this person. "_**Do you have a name for this person? Hell even a description of what they look like?**_" Sora questioned as Makoto could see a sense of determination shine in his eyes, his determination to figure out what on Earth was going on with his whole life being forcibly uprooted from his feet when he had worked so hard to earn it in the first place.

"_**Well... It was the Gothic Lolita bunny girl from my story and her name is Rachel...Rachel Alucard.**_" Makoto said as Sora placed his finger on his chin, Makoto's description of the girl felt...familiar... very familiar, "_**Can you elaborate further on what she looks like? Gothic Lolita bunny girl could also mean maid cafe you know.**_" Sora said as Makoto looked at him with some bewilderment before understanding the reason why he would say something like that.

"_**W-Well... she wears a black dress that had white and red trim on it... long blonde twin tailed hair... Oh! And she has red eyes too!**_" Makoto said as she was glad she was able to recall that much in the process as Sora's own mind began to think about the possibilities placed in front of him. "_**Was she short by any chance?**_" Sora questioned as Makoto nodded her head. "_**Yeah! Like little kid short!**_" Makoto confirmed as Sora nodded his head before realizing just who Makoto was talking about.

"_**I think...I met a girl who meets your description... and she's responsible for kidnapping Hunter when I was trying to convince him that I was his friend.**_" Sora said as Makoto couldn't help but pause for a bit before blinking her eyes a few times. "_**Wait a minute... are you trying to tell me, that a little girl like Rachel...kidnapped Hunter?**_" Makoto said as Sora simply nodded his head. "_**Yeah... she kidnapped him by forming this black portal and walking through it...**_"

As soon as Sora said that, Makoto couldn't help shiver at that. The thought of a black mass swallowing up one of her best friends from out of nowhere would be enough to send chills down anyone's spine. "_**I have been getting worried about Hunter... who knows what that girl might be doing with him...**_" Sora said as he wanted to pace himself but kept himself restrained on the bench as he looked at Makoto.

"_**Do you have a way of contacting this girl in the first place?**_" Sora questioned as Makoto scratched her head. "_**Well... it's less me contacting her and more her contacting me and letting me know what on Earth is going on with the world... and I wouldn't call what she did contact and more popping and out of nowhere to surprise me and have me quaking on my boots.**_" Makoto continued as Sora couldn't help but sweat hearing her say that.

"_**Well... at least it's good to know that she's been the one contacting you... but not good for us since she has not been leaving her address for us to contact her.**_" Sora commented as Makoto nodded her head. "_**Yeah... I probably should have asked her if there was a way for me to call her... but I was too spooked the few times she appeared and I lost my chance to do so.**_" Makoto commented as Sora nodded his head at that, understanding that anybody would react like that if surprised.

"_**If only there is a way for us to contact her in the first place... but unless she decides to do another reappearing trick, the only other method would be to look around the city in the first place.**_" Sora said with a small sigh as he realized this meant he was going to have to walk around Kagutsuchi, risking him fighting more people yet again. "_**Something I don't get however is why people like to pick random fights in this city. Seriously, today I got attacked by **__**a kakan without much brains**__**.**_" Sora whined as Makoto sweated a little.

"_**I agree with that... Today I got attacked by an old school friend and his robot big sister.**_" Makoto said as Sora couldn't help but look at her with some confusion, shaking his head and deciding that asking about it may not be the best idea at that moment. "_**Man... to think that our lives would become this crazy after the academy... I thought the Black Lotus would be the end of this craziness...**_" Sora said as Makoto couldn't help but giggle at that.

"_**Talk about life giving us the proverbial kick to the balls huh Sora.**_" Makoto said with a soft smile on her face as Sora looked at her. Despite the seriousness of the situation present in front of them right now, Both Sora and Makoto couldn't help but want to wind down a little as they leaned in for another kiss to make up for the many they didn't receive before Sora stopped mid way. "_**I mean, Don't get me wrong, I am liking all of these kisses, but what will we do if Noel wakes up and she sees you kissing a stranger?**_" Sora questioned as Makoto couldn't help but giggle.

"_**I mean...it would be difficult to explain...so how about just one last kiss before we get serious and decide what we should do.**_" Makoto said as Sora smiled and kissed Makoto without hesitation, his tongue entering her mouth and doing a tango with her tongue as Makoto had failed to mention the type of kiss that he should have given, not that she minded as she accepted the gesture and responded to his kiss in kind.

"_**Well... Now that we have gotten all of the kisses we can get out for now... let's focus on trying to figure out our next plan from here.**_" Makoto said as Sora nodded his head began to quickly collect his thoughts before deciding on what to do. "_**I think... it might be best if we split up and cover ground. But not for too long.**_" Sora suggested as Makoto nodded her head. "_**I agree... let's say we meet back up here in the afternoon. Will that be enough time for you to find Rachel and get her to tell you what on Earth is going on?**_" Makoto asked as Sora nodded his head.

"_**I hope it's enough time... how are you going to get Noel out of here in the first place if you are wanted by the NOL?**_" Sora questioned as Makoto checked her phone. "_**I am currently in contact with Sector Seven right now. They are helping me get Noel out of her for the information I do have on me right now.**_" Makoto said as Sora scratched his head a bit hearing that. "_**Sector Seven huh... I am guessing that you have met the Red Devil already?**_" Sora questioned as Makoto nodded her head.

"_**Yup... and I cannot help but feel bad for him because you beat him up and got him in trouble with professor Kokonoe. He's such a nice guy from the few times I got to talk with him... maybe a bit too serious with his job but still a good guy.**_" Makoto commented as Sora scratched his head even further as Makoto shook her head and patted his back. "_**I don't blame you though, you wouldn't know that since he's essentially a stranger to you.**_" Makoto comforted.

"_**Still doesn't change the fact I made the guy's job harder for him by making him drop that medicine bottle which I ended up dropping due to tossing it in a place where I should have been doing so in the first place**_." Sora said, his straight faced nature coming out as Makoto couldn't help but sweat at how harsh Sora could be with himself as she cleared her throat. "_**Well.. there are just some things in life that are just out of our reach at the end of the day. All we can do is just make the best of a shitty situation given to us.**_" Makoto said as she extended to Sora the remaining half bottle of whiskey.

"_**Do you think half a bottle would be enough for you to last for the day? I can't really drink much anymore unless I start getting tipsy.**_" Makoto said as Sora simply smiled and took the bottle from her. "_**If that is the case... Do you know how Sector Seven plans to get Noel out of here?**_" Sora said, Makoto placing her finger on her chin. "_**They might try using an unmarked airship to smuggle her out... maybe even the train system if they are bold enough. The professor didn't really bother to elaborate much on the mode of transport.**_" Makoto said as Sora pondered on what he should do before realizing the solution as he stood up and pull out his phone.

As soon as he did this, his fingers were already dialing for a number as he waited for the person to respond, that person being Caroline. "**Hello Boss. Did you manage to find your girlfriend out there?**" Caroline responded as Sora cleared his throat. "**Yeah. I managed to. Tell the bosses that I send them my regards for their help making sure she is safe.**" Sora said as Caroline breathed a sigh of relief on her end of the phone.

"**Thank god you said that... in any case, is the Reverse Flow system to your liking Boss?**" Caroline questioned as Sora knew she was asking this question for the sake of further refining the system for future users. "**It is... though it does hurt to have the seithr inside you forcibly sucked out.**" Sora said as Caroline scratched her head. "**Well I did warn you that it was a bit of an experimental system...**" Caroline confessed as Sora knew he had to let her know about the current situation.

"**Caroline... I think things are starting to become worse right now. It appears that the memory loss situation is not just in Otsu... but in my circle of friends too.**" Sora explained as Caroline bit her lips hearing that. "**I see... so it is not an ars magus based amnesia spell in the first place... no wonder the meds didn't do much for Derrick, Pikaka and Neko**." Caroline theorized as she began to type on the computer in front of her.

"**So what are you proposing? We need to do something if this whole people forgetting you thing is affecting everyone in the world.**" Caroline said as Sora placed his fingers on his chin before knowing what he needed to do. "**Caroline, I will need your help to move my funds to a person's bank account.**" Sora explained as Caroline gulped hearing that. "**And by moving funds... you mean move all of your cash right now to someone else.**" Caroline said, nervous to think that was what her boss was thinking.

"**Caroline, for the time being, I will need you to transfer my funds to my girlfriend's bank.**" Sora said as Makoto, who had been listening to this conversation this whole time suddenly widened her eyes hearing that. "**No wait... create a bank of Otsu account for her to use and then transfer the amount from there. That way we don't have to worry about the account freezing due to a massive transfer of cash.**" Sora said as this made Makoto further want to panic as she knew how loaded Sora was... very loaded.

"**I mean... that sounds great and all... but why not a shared account instead?**" Caroline suggested as Sora had thought about this while formulating his plan. "**We could, but we run the risk of the account ceasing to exist if this whole me being gone thing goes beyond just people.**" Sora said as Caroline nodded her head, understanding her boss's logic now. "**Alright then, just tell me her full name and I will create the account from here. Anything else you want me to do?**" Caroline asked, pushing aside any notes she was making to focus on her boss's tasks.

"**Yeah, I will give you my girlfriend's number. Bookmark it and try to transfer it to the Otsunian cell service if you can.**" Sora asked as Sora raised his hand, gesturing for Makoto to give him her phone. "**Wow... you really going to work me dry Boss... Well.. I can't complain since you are funding my whole project for me. I will do everything I can for you.**" Caroline said as Sora began to dial up Caroline's number on her phone.

"**Do you want me to let the Bosses know that I have your girlfriend's contact number with me? It would make it easier for them to contact you instead of sending their men everywhere for her.**" Caroline asked as Sora simply grunted, his way of saying yes to Caroline when he was busy with something else. "**In that case, I think I will leave you to do your own thing now... just promise me that you will stay safe out there boss.**" Caroline said as Sora couldn't help but smirk at that.

"**Don't worry Caroline. I always make sure to stay in tip top shape. And I have the Rev Blade to make sure I am still alive.**" Sora reassured as Caroline smiled, knowing that her invention was protecting her boss. "**In any case, I will get to it then. Good luck out there... and also tell your girlfriend I said Hi.**" Caroline said, hanging up as Sora gave Makoto back her phone as she was left staring right at Sora as she realized two things.

The first was that she at least now has a phone number that won't be blocked by the NOL... the second and more drastic thing was that she is now the owner of billions of Blaybloo that came out of nowhere. She was struggling to register this so Sora simply gave her the space she needed to do so as he saw her hyperventilate for a little bit and do a couple of surprise push ups before finally breathing normally as she looked at Sora in the eyes.

"_**Was...Was all of that really necessary?**_" Makoto questioned as Sora scratched his head, realizing that he might have been a bit extreme with his measures. "_**I guess you can say that... I guess... I am just worried that if anything happens to me... you will suffer for it so I wanted to make sure you were covered at least.**_" Sora explained as Makoto felt like saying something but paused, realizing that Sora had a right to be worried about her if anything did happen to him since he's the one the world was forgetting as she walked up to him and gave him a hug.

"_**Thank you Sora... I appreciate what you have done for me... I just wish I can do more for you.**_" Makoto wondered as Sora paused for a moment before smiling. "_**You can stay a little bit longer with me for a while before I go off to find this Rachel girl**_." Sora said with honesty in his voice as Makoto looked at him, a smile on her face as she pulled out her necklace, prompting Sora to do the same as they pressed their necklaces onto each other before hugging each other even more, the metals clanging with each other before fusing to one...

* * *

**The silver and gold chains linking with each other as the tags became one unified symbol.**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING!? I have been doing fine myself, staying at home, attending classes, doing anything that will keep my attention away from the current crisis we find ourselves in. All I can say in a time of crisis like this is just do whatever keeps you happy because at the end of the day, if you are not doing anything that makes you happy, you are just making yourself miserable in the process, especially now in times of crisis.**

**SO WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT!? WHAT QUESTIONS WILL HAVE ANSWERS FOR THEM!? WILL SORA BE ABLE TO FIND RACHEL ALUCARD IN A BIG CITY LIKE KAGUTSUCHI!? WILL MAKOTO BE ABLE TO GET NOEL OUT TO SAFETY!? AND JUST WHAT DOES THE WORLD HAVE PLANNED FOR OUR HEROES! Well then.. if you want to find out the answers to these questions and more, stay tuned to find out.**


	27. Canon 26: Questions For The Soul

(A New Canon has appeared. Let us see where the tunes of fate decide to take us now...)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 26

The first few steps Sora took while he was leaping around the pipes were a bit rough, metal clanging with each step he took. He had to be careful not to accidentally step on a piece of rusty metal for fear of accidentally breaking it on his footing. He had been diligently searching for the girl of mystery, Rachel Alucard for a few hours now, almost approaching noon at this rate and he still had nothing to show for it.

He couldn't help but feel a sense of frustration in his current situation, he knew that he needed to act fast because had to meet back up with Makoto as soon as possible. The longer he spends away from her, the more he feels something bad is going to happen to her. '_**If I can't find her by the afternoon, I best just head back to Makoto.**_' Sora thought as he was only doing this with the hopes of getting answers and even then he knew there was a possibility that he would just get more questions instead of answers.

Even so, he knew he must do it. Better to have at least tried rather than stand around doing nothing while awkwardly dealing with the silence he would have had with Noel staring at him before asking if they really knew each other. As much as he would want to spend time with the others… this is probably the better use of his current time in Kagutsuchi before he returned to Otsu to decide where he would go from there.

As his mind was thinking this, he briefly did not focus on where his footing was and felt the steel slowly bend on where he was standing. It was at that brief moment that he immediately regained focus as he quickly pulled out the Rev Blade and stabbed it on the brick wall immediately. As soon as he did so, the pipe that his feet had touched broke on him, leaving him dangling briefly before tossing himself onto the building's fire escape.

"_**God dammit Sora. Focus already...**_" Sora said, slapping himself in the face before deciding to climb up the fire escape to get to the roof. Even if he could just continue running up the pipelines, he would put himself in a better tactical advantage by making sure he can have a solid platform to try and scout out Rachel Alucard. As he continued to make his way up, he couldn't help but exercise some caution at the situation presented in front of him.

"_**Can't waste too much time finding someone who leaves no tracks… unless someone shows up to help make things easier for me, I will have to just look everywhere.**_" Sora mumbled to himself as he reached the top of the roof, taking in the view of the city as he walked over the edge of the roof and peeked over, ready to see if his eyes are able to catch anything out of place. "_**Now...if I am a gothic Lolita girl…. I will be standing somewhere….somewhere.**_" Sora said as his eyes continued to look around for something.

"**My. Wasting this much energy just to find me. It must mean that you wish to speak to me.**" A voice spoke that spooked Sora as he raised his hand towards the handle of the Rev Blade. Was a ghost trying to speak to him? Or maybe the mystery girl he has been looking for. "**Well that depends… do you intend to show yourself or speak like some ghost?**" Sora questioned as he felt the wind briefly blow his direction as he looked at the direction the wind blew out of instinct.

As he did, he noticed a strange creature floating towards him as his eyes widened at the sight of the creature. His blind eye struggled to not blind him as he could see that it was a red bat of all things flying towards him. "**Hey! I was asked by the lady to take you to her!**" The weird red bat creature said as Sora blinked his eyes a few times before grabbing the bat from the sky and looked at it with curiosity in his eyes.

"**OWW! LET GO OF ME ****YOU BRUTE!**" The creature shouted as Sora released it out of surprise. It was a talking red bat as he cleared his throat at what was simply a bizarre situation in front of him. "**Sorry...I just needed to make sure you were real and I had not lost my mind in the process.**" Sora apologized as the bat puffed up it's chest. "**Of course I am real! I am my mistress's familiar! Now are you going to come with me or not!?**" The bat said as Sora knew he had to take this opportunity.

"**Sure, but there better not be any kind of ambush laid out for me otherwise I am going to kick your ass.**" Sora said bluntly as he walked forward, following the bat as it floated ahead of him harmlessly. '_**Still...so weird that it's even talking in the first place.**_' Sora thought as he followed the red bat through the rooftops, taking each step in stride as soon he arrived at what looked to be an intersection of sorts that connected various areas within the hierarchical city.

'_**Multiple angles to get jumped on...that sounds like something fun to deal with.**_' Sora thought as the bat continued to lead Sora to what he hoped was the girl that he was looking for. Finally, he walked into a shaded area where he noticed a tuff of white hair as he walked towards the figure, realizing who it was. "**Really? I never knew you could summon out weird talking red bats Ragna The Bloodedge.**" Sora said as Ragna turned his head towards him.

"**I see the Rabbit called for you too.**" Ragna said as Sora took his seat in front of him as he realized that they were seated in a restaurant. "**I got tired of waiting for her and decided to order something to eat. Hope you don't mind udon.**" Ragna said as Sora raised his eyebrow. "**Look… Rabbit told me that someone was coming along and that I better get them something to eat while she took her sweet time getting here. I'm used to feeding people at this rate so just go ahead and order something already.**"Ragna said, sounding like he was complaining more than offering.

"**Oh yeah, that bat is not with me. it's the rabbit's pet.**" Ragna said as Sora simply took a seat as the rabbit floated right next to Ragna. "**Don't just call me pet! I am a noble familiar loyal to house Alucard!**" The bat shouted as Ragna grabbed the bat and tossed him as hard as he could away from the two as two udon bowls came out. The two udons had the usual thick noodles and broth associated with the dish but unlike the normal udon bowl, these came with a poached egg gently resting on the soup of the udon and a fried piece that looked like vegetables and shrimp mixed together.

"**I didn't know what you would want to eat so I decided to get what I would normally eat. By the way, if we are going to pay, we are not going to dine and dash you hear me.**" Ragna warned as Sora looked at the bowl. He could tell from a glance that this was going to be rather filling with the fried piece in question. But he has never been one to refuse a person's generosity for food and he had not taken breakfast yet so the energy this would give would be crucial.

"**In that case.** _**Itadakimasu.**_" Sora said as he grabbed a pair of chopsticks and ate the udon presented in front of him. The first bite into the udon gave him a nice mild taste as much to his surprise, the udon tasted quite sour, most likely made by the owner to contrast the oiliness of the tempura which he ate with. Next he tasted the soup and it's mildness helped to combine the two ingredients together and finally the poached egg added a level of creaminess that went well with everything. Soon, Sora realized he had finished his bowl of udon without realizing it.

"**Woah…**** That was actually good.**" Sora said to himself, surprised he ate the meal in front of him that fast as compared to the time he ate with the green haired freak and they had what felt like a shit ton of Chinese food, it all tasted quite average to bad. "**I know right. And yet it's heavy enough that you can even skip dinner if you are willing.**" Ragna said as Sora couldn't help but crack his neck a little. All he could do at this moment was simply wait for the girl he has been looking for to make her appearance so sitting around in this modest udon store with the most wanted man in the world was the only thing he could do.

"**Say…**** is that over sized cat alright?**" Sora questioned, wondering what happened to the Kakan after he had kicked her down a hill with a cart. "**She will live… Kakans are much stronger than you think.**" Ragna said, slurping down on his udon. "**And what about you with the green haired freak?**" Sora questioned as Ragna stopped slurping for a bit before swallowing down his udon. "**We fought for a little bit before he ran away… and as you can see I am fine.**" Ragna answered as Sora simply nodded his head.

"**Now care to tell me why he was after you in the first place? It really cannot be because you actually dined and dashed on his ass.**" Ragna said, Sora able to feel the skepticism on his voice as Sora scratched his head a little. "**Well… that's exactly why he was after my ass. I really did not like the food he gave me and he made me want to run away from him.**" Sora said as Ragna clenched on his chopsticks for a bit before nodding his head.

"**Well good. Stay away from that freak… not just because he gave you a bad dinner in the first place.**" Ragna said as Sora wondered if he should press on further with his questioning as Ragna could see it on his face before giving off a small sigh, gesturing with his hand for Sora to spit out what he was thinking. "**Well… I guess the question would be why you seem to dislike the green haired freak… but I think that's private information you don't want to speak out.**" Sora said as Ragna nodded his head.

"**You're damn right it's private. Hell we only just met yesterday, I am not going to tell you my whole life story now.**" Ragna replied as Sora couldn't help but chuckle at that. "**I did not expect you to do so… but for a wanted criminal you are awfully nice to people.**" Sora commented as Ragna scratched his head. "**It's not my choice alright. People seem to be drawn to me so I have to take care of their asses so that they will leave me alone.**" Ragna explained as Sora nodded his head.

"**I guess when you put it that way. You sound more like one of those Tsunderes I keep hearing about**." Sora said as Ragna immediately blushed hearing that. "**W-W-What the hell do you mean by that!?**" Ragna replied in shock, about to slam his hand on the table but stopped himself from doing so as to make sure he didn't flip the table. "**Well… you say you don't want people to be near you yet you treat them to a meal… sounds more like something a Tsundere would do you know what I mean?**" Sora said as Ragna simply continued to blush before pouting a little and sitting back on his seat.

"**Shut up alright. I am not a Tsundere of any sorts. I am just a normal guy who doesn't like having people around him and treat people to meals so that they would leave me alone.**" Ragna said as Sora was about to say something else but could tell that his comment had maybe made Ragna feel a sense of embarrassment as there was some truth to his words. "**In any case… how much longer do you think we would have to wait until the rabbit lady shows up?**" Sora questioned, looking at his phone for the time.

* * *

Ragna: **Knowing her, it will take her a while to get here**

Sora: **A while? It sounds like you know her**

Ragna: **You can say it's a complicated matter. I know her because she was the one who saved me from dying when I was younger**

Sora:** Dying? Did something happen to you?**

Ragna: **Nothing you need to know. Besides, I agree with you that she's making us wait for a bit longer than normal.**

* * *

"**Well excuse me for wanting to make sure my two guests had arrived and made sure they fed themselves.**" A voice said as Ragna simply sighed while Sora looked around wondering where that voice came from. "**Again with the secrecy rabbit? What's with you wanting to hide all the damn time.**" Ragna said as Sora realized what he had just said. "**Wait...Rabbit… you don't mean...**" Before Sora could finish his sentence, a black portal formed in front of the duo.

As this portal formed, Sora saw her… the little girl who had kidnapped a friend who had forgotten who he was as it took a lot of energy from him to just not leap out of his seat and attack her at that moment. Instead he simply drummed his hands onto his legs, relaxing himself as he looked at the girl in the eyes as she looked at him. "And I see that you are still here… The one known as the Error."

"**And I see that you are still using black portals to move around… The rabbit girl known as Rachel Alucard...**" Sora said, trying to make a comeback speech only to realize how bad it sounded when he said it. "**In any case… I cannot believe I actually managed to find you… I guess call it dumb luck or lucky chance…. I am just glad I managed to find you.**" Sora said, hoping that he would finally have the chance to get the answers that he felt he deserved to get.

"**Sounds like you two need to speak privately. If you would excuse me...**" Ragna said, slowly standing up as Rachel swung a parasol right onto Ragna's head. "**Who said you can leave you mutt? I still require you to stay here and listen in on this conversation.**" Rachel lectured as Ragna grumbled a bit, wondering what this conversation had to do with him as Rachel soon took a stool and pulled it closer to herself.

"**I must say… these stools are truly fit for a peasant.**" Rachel said as despite her comment, she decided to sit down on it, uncaring of the squeaky noises it made as she focused her attention right towards Sora. "**So… from what I heard from my familiar, you seem to be trying to find me… care to tell me why?**" Rachel asked, the air of grace she had about her did not fit the image of a little girl as Sora decided to not point that out.

"**Well…**** I am pretty sure you can guess why I would want to find you since you called me an Error...**" Sora said, guessing from the body language that Rachel Alucard herself was a woman who did not really like to waste time as she looked at him with a bit of annoyance on her face with the way Sora worded his question. "**Of course… you would wish to know about your current situation. After all, me calling you an Error clearly tells me that you want to know what I know about your current situation.**" Rachel said as Sora simply nodded his head.

"**But that can wait for a bit, you look like you haven't had breakfast yet.**" Sora said as Rachel simply looked at him with a bit of a puzzled look on his eyes. "**Oh? Don't you wish to get your answer now so you can do what you will with it?**" Rachel asked as Sora slowly stood up. "**Don't get me wrong. I would like to do that. But there's also the fact that there are other questions I would like to ask you and that may take a while.**" Sora continued as he walked towards the restaurant. "**I'll get us a quick snack we can have… then we can talk business.**" Sora said as he entered the restaurant, leaving Rachel and Ragna to themselves.

"**Care to explain to me what on Earth is going on rabbit?**" Ragna asked as he was clearly lost in this conversation and unable to comprehend the terminology being tossed his way. "**My my… oh well, this is to be expected from the mutt.**" Rachel insulted as Ragna resisted the urge to get into an argument with her right now. "**I just want to know why you are so interested in the damn guy… hell what on Earth is an Error anyways?**" Ragna questioned as Rachel decided to explain to Ragna all she knew for the time being while Sora was in the restaurant.

In the restaurant itself, Sora was looking through the menu, trying to collect his thoughts into anything comprehensible. He was so focused in trying to find the girl that he realized he had failed in actually thinking about proper questions to ask her. '_**Fuck me… I guess I really thought I was not going to find her in the first place that now I found her, I am even more lost to what I should do.**_' Sora thought as he bit his lip, his eyes staring intensely onto the menu and what it had.

"**Say…**** What's good on the menu for a little girl that wears fancy clothing?**" Sora questioned the clerk as the clerk simply stared at the menu for a little bit before pointing on the desert section of the menu, an item called Dorayaki. "**A red bean paste filling...sounds like she would like that. I'll get that one...as well as one green tea please.**" Sora said as he paid the amount due and waited patiently for the Dorayaki.

'_**Right…**__** I got the thing to give her… hopefully this would be enough to butter her up that she would be more willing to divulge the information..**_.' Sora thought as he took a deep breath, deciding that now should be spent trying to figure out what questions he should question the little girl as he knew he had to pick the questions wisely. '_**You can do this Sora… all you have to do is just ask her. Why everyone in the world is forgetting about me… and also why the world is so determined to get rid of me…. Those should be the main questions I should be asking.**_' Sora thought as the Dorayaki finally arrived with the green tea as he raised his hand to pick up the Dorayaki before realizing he did not have a hand to pick up the tea.

"**...****Can I get a tray?**" Sora questioned as meanwhile outside, Ragna was simply scratching his head as Rachel gave him a brief summary of what Sora was. "**So you're telling me that guy is currently being erased for some reason… and you know he's being erased but not why?**" Ragna said as he was simply struggling to comprehend what Rachel was saying. "**I would not say the answer to his erasure is not a simple one. It's a complicated issue indeed.**"

"**Complicated huh… Are you even going to tell him this stuff or just keep it behind his back?**" Ragna asked as Rachel simply raised her eyebrow at that, interested that Ragna would ask a question like that. "**Oh? Is the mongrel actually growing some compassion for someone else that is not himself?**" Rachel mocked, prompting Ragna to respond as he scratched his head. "**It's not like that Rabbit… It's just I can sorta relate to him right now**."

"**Relate now? My it is worse than I thought. The Mongrel's actually starting to develop a fever.**" Rachel continued as Ragna resisted the urge to snap at her loudly like he would normally for two main reasons. One, he was in a public place and two, it was not worth his energy right now. "**I am not developing a fever dammit… It's just that if I was getting erased for no reason, I would want to know the reasons for that too you know**." Ragna said, remaining calm as Rachel pressed her chin in thought as Sora opened the door with his foot.

"**Sorry it took a while, had to balance this tray.**" Sora said as he rushed out and quickly placed the tray of sweet and tea in front of Rachel. "**I didn't know what you might like so I got you this Dorayaki and they didn't have any tea you might like so I got green tea instead.**" Sora said, gesturing for Rachel to help herself as he sat back and watched the princess eat the offering in front of her. '_**Please like it… that whole set is around 1000 blaybloo.**_' Sora thought as Rachel took a bite out of the Dorayaki.

Rachel simply did not make a reaction as she chewed on the fluffy pancake like dessert, it's red bean filling touching her lips as she elegantly licked her lips to clean the jam off her. She then took a sip of green tea to wash it down before setting the meal in front of her down. "**The meal is adequate. The sweetness of the red beans nicely contrast with my green tea. At least for now, I can say you had a decent mind for choosing food.**" Rachel said, Sora sweating at the tiny food critic.

"**I…**** don't know whether to take insult to that or accept that as a compliment...so thanks?**" Sora said as he scratched his head awkwardly at the gesture the little girl gave him. Was she complimenting him or actually insulting him? The way she spoke with such honesty and bluntness made it difficult to tell what she was actually thinking. Not that it actually mattered at that moment since he needed to focus on a few questions he had in his mind.

"**Well…**** at least it's good to know you like it… Care to answer my questions now Rachel Alucard?**" Sora questioned as he observed Rachel take a small sip of her green tea before looking at him with a look on her face. "**That will depend on your answer to one question I have about you.**" Rachel said as Sora knew he needed to answer this question carefully otherwise, she might just choose to keep everything a completely secret from him and he could not afford that.

"**Care to tell me where you were born?**" Rachel asked as Sora looked at her confused. Where he was born? What does she even mean by that? "**Do...Do you mean by birthplace?**" Sora questioned as Rachel was surprised to see Sora asked such a question to what she knew was a simple answer for most people to say instantly. "**Yes. It is your birthplace...**" Rachel said as Sora paused hearing that, both Ragna and Rachel able to see him wondering about the question on his face.

"**To be honest…. I don't really know… the earliest memory I have is me waking up….in a place where nobody should be at.**" Sora said, the memories of him spending his days lifelessly in the dark, metal bars surrounding him as he was merely a body surrounded by a sea of bodies. Sora then stared at Rachel and Ragna as he waited for their answer. "**If I can be honest….that is not the answer I was expecting from you.**" Rachel answered as Sora swallowed some saliva, wondering if she would refuse to answer his questions now.

"**But I am satisfied with that response for now… so… do tell me your questions.**" Rachel said as finally, after trying to butter her up and answering her random question, it was Sora's turn to ask the question as he wondered what he should ask. Maybe the first question should be the most obvious one. "**Tell me… what did you do to my friend?**" Sora questioned as this was the first one he should ask. While he wanted to know the truth of his existence… he couldn't help but also worry about what was happening with Hunter and if he was being held against his will by this Gothic Lolita girl.

"**...****He is doing fine currently, In fact, he is currently resting in my abode and I am having my butler take care of him in my absence.**" Rachel said as Sora couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief hearing that. He had feared the worst, that maybe Hunter was being held captive and was being tortured. But at least to hear he was receiving proper care despite not being in a hospital was enough for him… but that immediately changed back to worry when he realized he did not know if this girl had hostile intentions for him.

"**You're not planning on attacking him while he recovers right?**" Sora said out of caution as Ragna couldn't help but stand up after that. "**Look! Rachel may not look like it but she's not that despicable. She may be a stuck up bitch but that doesn't mean she's that bad.**" Ragna said as Rachel used her parasol and slapped him right at his thigh. "**Oh come on! I was defending you!**" Ragna complained as Rachel simply sighed before looking right at Sora once again.

"**As much as the mongrel wishes to defend me… I can understand why you would have such thoughts in the first place. My only regret is that you seem to not have that much trust in me.**" Rachel said as Sora scratched his head. "**You're kind of expecting too much from me in the first place… While you may have helped my friend. I still don't know you well enough to judge if you are a good or bad person… Call it exercising caution.**" Sora explained.

"**Fair enough… though I doubt that is the only question you have in your mind right now.**" Rachel asked as Sora nodded his head, knowing that he should save his most important question for last as there was one other important detail he needed to know. "**How on Earth did you find out about Makoto Nanaya… and why are you interested in her?**" Sora questioned, the second most important question he needed to know as Rachel raised her eyebrow on that.

"**Are you asking about my interest in regards with the girl that has moxie?**" Rachel said as Sora had to pause to listen to what she had said before nodding his head. "**Y-Yeah… I am asking about that… just why did you have to word it like that.**" Sora answered as he couldn't help but feel like he was speaking to someone who clearly has been drinking too much of the high class tea for her own good as Ragna himself sighed hearing that.

"**At first, it was because she was mysteriously linked with your current situation. After all, her resisting the control of Relius Clover's observation of her soul without losing herself did stem from your existence after all.**" Rachel said, matching with the story that Makoto gave him as he simply gestured with his hand for her to continue. "**Then as I helped the girl along, I cannot help but feel intrigued by her. The bond that you two share is truly unique and only able to exist in this possibility...**" Rachel continued as Sora couldn't help but say it.

"**Because I don't exist in any other possibility but this one for some reason?**" Sora said as Rachel simply remained quiet as Ragna himself was getting lost in this conversation but did not say anything regardless of how crazy this was starting to become. Rachel herself was able to follow this conversation itself as she knew what the next question was going to come out. "**Then tell me… Why is this world so determined to try and erase me for some reason?**"

As soon as Sora said those words, the restaurant became quiet. The people at the table didn't say a word as the wind blew briefly. Ragna sat between the two, his eyes darting left and right wondering what he should do about the situation. Rachel herself ate another piece of the Dorayaki as Sora himself remained quiet, remaining patient and hoping that Rachel would give him an answer right now.

"**Unfortunately…**** I do not know why the world is so determined...**" Before she could finish her sentence, Sora immediately slammed his hand on the table, destroying the table with ease as Ragna and Rachel could feel the anger radiating out of the man as Sora felt like he was running into a dead end once again. "**However… I may be able to divulge a theory as to why the world wants to erase your existence.**" Rachel said as Sora did not like the idea of leaving things simply to theory but what choice did he had.

"**Then what is your theory then?**" Sora asked, trying to hold back from letting his agitation take over and override his reasoning. Rachel on the other hand had other things in her mind. "**I would tell you… but I wish to put you to the test if you do not mind.**" Rachel said as Sora clenched his fist and closed his eyes. He didn't know if this girl was trying to test his patience but if she is, she is definitely doing a good job pushing it to it's limits.

"**Then tell me what I need to do so I can get the answer from you already. I don't have much time to waste right now.**" Sora said as Rachel simply stood up, pushing the stool to the side as she looked at Sora in the eyes. "**Prove to me your resolve by playing a game with me.**" Rachel said as Sora rubbed his forehead. Ragna meanwhile could notice the stress building up on his face as he looked at Rachel, wondering what she was hoping to accomplish by annoying him like this.

"**All I ask is for you to touch me… with the mongrel acting as your obstacle.**" Rachel said as Ragna looked at her surprised. "**H-HEY NOW! Don't wrap me up in this whole mess you are starting to make Rabbit!**" Ragna complained as Rachel looked at him with an air of calm around her. "**Do not worry so much Ragna, I will be assisting you from the rear so you don't have to worry about being dead weight.**" Rachel answered as Ragna couldn't help but feel insulted by that comment as Sora simply stared at the both of them before nodding his head.

"**I don't care what I have to do. If you have something you think might make sense and you are doing this to test me, then I am going to do it not because of your interests but of mine.**" Sora said as he placed his hand on the rev blade, showing that he was ready to go as Ragna was scratching his head, frustrated that he got roped into this whole mess against his will but he knew better than to complain about spilled milk.

"**I guess I got no choice in the matter, Fine I will do this. But not for you rabbit.**" Ragna said, reaching out to grab a giant slab of metal that was resting on the wall that most people would call Ragna the Bloodedge's signature weapon, the Aramasa. "**And don't expect me to hold back kid… even if you don't have to harm me, I will hurt you.**" Ragna warned as Sora simply shook his head before walking out of the restaurant to the street outside as in Sora's mind there was one thing he needed to do.

* * *

**...Get this whole thing done with so he can meet back with Makoto…**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING THESE DAYS!? Well now… this whole pandemic thing has been putting a damper on things. I don't know about you but I cannot help but feel a bit depressed about our current situation. Regardless, Staying positive is all we can really do in this time of craziness and madness around us. So let's stay positive together and hopefully not go insane with each other.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TO SORA MINAKAZE!? WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF RACHEL'S TEST!? WHY IS RAGNA THE BLOODEDGE ASKED TO FIGHT AGAINST SORA WHEN RACHEL CAN DO SO HERSELF!? AND FINALLY WILL SORA BE ABLE TO COMPLETE THE TEST FAST ENOUGH TO REUNITE WITH MAKOTO!? All these questions and more will be answered in the next chapter of Canon.**


	28. Canon 27: Test Of Wills

(A New Canon has begun and we shall see where the ties of fate shall lead us now. Let us proceed without wasting another minute.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 27

Previously on Canon Distortion

Sora Minakaze is searching for the truth, the truth as to why he is currently being erased from the world. In order to find the answers, he turns to the girl who saved his girlfriend from a fate that would have been worse than death, Rachel Alucard. As soon as she finds her and he asks her questions however, she decides to pose a simple test for him. A test that involves Ragna the Bloodedge for some reason. Having no choice and needing answers, Sora accepts the challenge and proceeds to steel himself for the challenge ahead.

And now, the continuation of Canon Distortion

* * *

'_**This is what I had not had in mind...**_' Sora thought as he stood in the middle of the street, stretching his wrist with a few flicks as he looked at Ragna and Rachel preparing themselves for the test ahead. Sora had thought that Rachel was going to be the more graceful and diplomatic type. The last thing he expected out of a little girl was to test him using a more physical method. '_**Just why is she even testing me in the first place? Is she doubting my intentions or trying to figure me out?**_' Sora wondered as Ragna himself stretched a few times while waiting for Rachel to give the rules.

"**So... are you going to give us the rules already rabbit questioned?**" Ragna questioned as Rachel herself was enjoying her seat. Where she got that seat was still a question for Sora as he did not see her bring it with her in the first place. "**Well now, getting a bit antsy I see. Well that is understandable.**" Rachel said as she stood up, surprising Sora as he soon saw the chair become a gigantic cat as his eyes blinked a few times when she did that.

'_**How...How did I focus so much to miss a giant cat transforming into a chair.'**_ Sora said as he shook his head, deciding that was not important right now as he needed to focus on what was in front of him instead as he decided to listen carefully to the rules Rachel was going to give him. "**The rules of this test are going to be very simple. You are to try and touch me where I currently stand. The mongrel will do everything in his power to stop you.**"

As soon as Sora heard the rules, he couldn't help but blink. That's it? All he has to do to get his answers is to just run past Ragna and then touch the little girl. "**Woah wait a minute rabbit, when you mean everything, you don't mean I can use force now.**" Ragna said as Sora's eyes blinked at that. Ragna was right about that, he could just use a shit ton of force to stop him. And that was when it clicked in Sora's mind just how fucked up the test in front of him really is.

"**Am I allowed to harm Ragna if I have no choice?**" Sora questioned, surprising Ragna that he would ask such a question as he would have thought that Sora would have incapacitated him just to make reaching Rachel easier. After all, that would have been what he would do if he was in this situation as Rachel giggled in amusement. "**If you can avoid incapacitating the man, I will throw in a bonus to your question.**" Rachel said as that was what Sora needed to hear to at least justify the lack of a need to harm Ragna right now.

"**Then let's get this started already. I've got to head back to meet up with her soon and I don't have time to waste right now.**" Sora said as he tensed his legs, getting ready to spring into action as Ragna himself scratched his head. "**Just how on Earth do I keep getting myself dragged into these situations.**" Ragna wondered out loud as Sora began to quickly formulate a plan of attack to pass this test as he knew he had to at least map things out in his mind.

'_**If I use my drive I will be able to pass the test easily... but that may drain more energy out of me and I may need that for later.**_' Sora thought, rationalizing that usage of his drive will make it easier to pass the test laid out in front of him but it would leave him drained of energy he might need later for more fights. '_**If**_ _**I can minimize the amount of movement and energy I waste then I should be ready for whatever is going to be thrown my way**_.' Sora thought as he looked around to see what he could use to his advantage.

'_**A dumpster, a couple of broken furniture and a few lamp poles... looks like I can scale my way out of Ragna's way and try to place myself in between him and the girl. If I can do that at least it's got to be easier.**_' Sora thought as he took a couple of deep breathes to focus his mind on the task ahead of him. Right in front of him is the number 1 most wanted criminal in the world and while he is definitely a dangerous foe, he knows absolutely nothing about him other than he uses a unique sword that has the ability to shift into a scythe.

"**If you two are ready… the test shall commence.**" Rachel said but silence greeted the three. Rachel had expected the two to immediately begin fighting. Or at the very least, Ragna to make the first move by charging forward immediately as he normally would. But for once, nothing was happening and this was a surprise to her as she could feel the stillness of the air hitting her right now. Sora and Ragna seemed content to simply just stare at each other to deadlock as they placed their hands on their respective weapons, ready to draw them at a moment's notice.

'**Right…****. Make your move...**' Ragna thought as his eyes glared right at Sora's direction. '**Come at me right now… and let's make this quick.**' Ragna thought some more as he tensed up his legs, ready to spring into action should the time come but Sora was remaining vigilant and still. He was not going to move a single muscle. In fact, Sora's eyes were doing more moving than his whole body as Ragna practiced patience for once and didn't move as well as a result.

Sora meanwhile was simply content with staring right at Ragna… at least until he saw his chance to act as a can slowly rolled up to his feet. As soon as it came to a stop, Ragna saw Sora raise his leg, about to kick the can as his attention was drawn to the can at that moment. As soon as his eyes left his gaze of Sora's top body however, Sora immediately released his grip on the Rev Blade and tossed right at Ragna's way the broken hilt, forcing Ragna to react by blocking and causing it to drop to the ground.

As he lowered his guard to take a look, the can that he was looking at before came flying right for his face, smacking him dead on as he heard footsteps right to his side. "**OH NO YOU DON'T!**" Ragna shouted as he raised his blade to try and trip Sora, managing to clip him by his feet and forcing Sora to recover as Ragna immediately placed himself between Sora and Rachel once more as Sora shook his head before getting back to his stance.

'_**At least he has good reactions… but I know he's not that fast.**_' Sora thought as he grabbed the Rev Blade and swung it to the ground, revving it as Ragna still couldn't help but scratch the itch that he was feeling. Why was a one armed person like Sora even using a weapon like the Rev Blade in the first place? Without a second hand, he wouldn't be able to swing that heavy piece of iron at it's full potential. So there had to be a trick with it to warrant the man carrying it.

Meanwhile Sora was more focused in trying to figure out what Ragna was capable of so he would be able to exploit a weakness he might be able to see. Running towards Ragna again, this time Sora incorporated zig zagging to his movements, trying to put Ragna out of balance as he swayed his body into the motion, allowing him to move in an even more erratic pattern. As soon as he came close, he immediately twirled around Ragna, trying to slip past him but the man was not going to have any of it and grabbed Sora by his collar.

"**Not this time kid!**" Ragna yelled, tossing Sora to the ground before picking him up quickly from the ground and kicking Sora in the stomach, getting flung back in the process as Sora quickly recovered from that, shaking his head as he felt the kick from that one. Sora had no time to recover from that as he saw Ragna sweep down the ground with his blade, creating what seemed to be a black wave of seithr ripping through the ground as a massive head came out of the ground.

"**DEAD SPIKE!**" Ragna shouted as the massive head swam through the ground right towards Sora's direction, forcing him to dodge out of the way as the massive head slammed itself onto a wall, splattering all over it and returning back to the black like mass it was before as Sora's eyes widened a little by that. "What the hell was that?" Sora said out loud, registering that he had just witnessed something that most people would not have had the pleasure of seeing as he looked right back at Ragna with a seriousness in his eyes.

"**Looks like you really are bringing out the big guns Ragna The Bloodedge.**" Sora said as Ragna simply kept his focus and ignored the comment tossed his way. "**Oh don't worry about me. I don't plan on holding back even though we just met. It would be rude to do so.**" Ragna said as Sora chuckled a little bit, cracking his neck in the process as he knew he had to pick up the pace otherwise Ragna would simply stall him out for way too long.

"**Then it looks like I need to pick up the pace a little bit more.**" Sora said as he tensed up his legs and gripped the Rev Blade tightly, making sure it was secure on his hand before he sprinted right for Ragna. Ragna, not content with letting Sora dictate the offense, decided to meet him head on, both readying themselves to clash with each other. Ragna raised his blade up to brace for impact while Sora did the same with his but angled it so that when their blades clashed, Ragna's slid upwards, exposing just a bit of his chin.

It was at that moment that Sora released a kick, knocking him by the head and sending him to the side as Sora quickly ran past Ragna once more. He knew the objective well. It was not Ragna he should be focusing on but instead Rachel as if he can just touch her even once, this whole charade of a test will be over as he was also trying to get the bonus of not knocking Ragna out to hopefully squeeze out as much information as possible from the Gothic girl.

But Ragna was not going to let that happen as he gritted his teeth. "**NOT SO FAST!**" Ragna shouted as he tossed another dead spike to Sora's way, forcing him to dodge once more. But it was in the middle of his dodge that Sora felt it, the feeling of a distortion finish triggering as Ragna arched his back forwards, cocking the blade up before charging up a massive wave of seithr into the blade. All Sora knew at that moment was that he better had his guard up otherwise this was not going to be good.

"**CARNAGE!**" Ragna yelled as he moved quickly with the Aramasa, slamming the tip of the blade right into the Rev Blade's guard. Sora recoiled from impact, struggling to keep his guard up as Ragna slowly pulled up, a massive wave of seithr swimming right behind him as his eyes glowed red at that moment. "**SCISSORS!**" As the wave of seithr formed a massive head, threatening to bite Sora whole as Sora lost his footing on the ground before crashing right onto the wall of the restaurant, coughing out blood in the process.

As soon as Sora managed to stabilize himself, he quickly refocused his gaze onto Ragna the Bloodedge once more as he felt the pain coursing through his body from that one attack. Even though he was guarding it the amount of force packed into it was enough to send him flying. Just what would have happened if he had eaten the real thing without guarding? "**No one you are considered the number 1 most wanted criminal...**" Sora said as he wiped the blood flowing out of his mouth as Ragna sighed.

"**Give it up kid. Even I don't need to fight for long enough to see that you are outmatched the way you are.**" Ragna said as Sora shook his head at that. "**Come on Ragna… That's being harsh now. Especially since I am trying to not knock you out.**" Sora said as this made Ragna raise his eyebrow up in surprise. Rachel herself couldn't help but raise her eyebrow at that, intrigued by the boy's words as Ragna decided that more clarification was needed.

* * *

Ragna: **Not knock me out? Are you kidding me? You know that's just a trick that the rabbit is saying to limit how hard you can hit right?**

Sora: **So?**

Ragna: **If you can go all out then why not just go all out right now and get it over with. We don't have to waste time if you do so.**

Sora: **Well sorry I am wasting your time Sir. But I can't really afford to burn myself out and rest up when there can be more fights later in the day. I need to make sure I am all topped up for what's to come.**

Ragna: **And waste our time holding back? Come on, I can tell that trying to hold back like you are right now is seriously preventing you from fighting all out.**

* * *

"**I****t i****s my own business if I choose to hold back… besides, don't you want to end this sooner so you can do your own thing? Why are you even wasting your time talking to me like this and not trying to finish me?**" Sora taunted, angering Ragna a bit at the bull headed taunt thrown his way as Ragna scoffed. "**Oh really now. Looks like you just signed your own death warrant. Sorry rabbit, but this guy ain't talking to you anytime soon.**" Ragna said as he charged towards Sora, the first time he ever did so as Rachel noticed the glint in Sora's eyes.

'**The fool fell for the bait.**' Rachel simply thought as Ragna swung his blade, leaving Sora to block it as Ragna tried to throw a punch right into Sora's gut while his guard was exposed. It was logical since he had one arm and couldn't exactly grab it at that moment but as soon as he thought that he felt his blade go through, throwing the momentum of his punch off as he swung with his arms crossed before being met with a swift counter to his face.

Ragna then saw what Sora had done. He had released his grip on the weapon and swung back with his fist. He willingly dropped his own weapon for the chance to land a hit despite the disadvantage it would put him at as he kicked Ragna in the stomach to create some distance, allowing him to pick up the Rev Blade. "**But you are right about one thing. Maybe I should loosen up just a bit.**" Sora said as he changed the Rev Blade into the Rev Arm in front of Ragna's eyes, bewildering him greatly as he did not expect the sword to do something like that.

"**OH NO YOU DON'T!**" Ragna yelled, realizing that Sora was going to attach the Rev Arm to the stump of his arm and was determined to stop him from doing so. Sora however, familiar with the trick of opponents stopping him from attaching the arm and trying to stop him had a simply trick of stopping his foes from doing so as he tossed the Rev Arm right at Ragna's face, bonking him in surprise as the Rev Arm flew into the air.

This disorientated the white haired man as his red and green eyes strained to keep focus on Sora who he had allowed to disappear from his sight. '**Dammit! Where did he…!**' As if by instinct, Ragna looked up to see Sora soaring in the sky, probably using the fact that the arm disorientated him to jump into the air and attach the Rev Arm to his stump of an arm as Sora coiled his back and revved the handle once.

"**ENHANCED GEAR!**" The Rev Arm yelled as Ragna knew he had to dodge as Sora slammed his fist where Ragna stood, cratering the ground in the process. "_**Saikuron'inpakuto!**_" Sora yelled as Ragna was left on his ass as Sora pulled the Rev Arm out of the small crater it had made. "**So maybe it's time for me to ramp things up a small notch to end this.**" Sora said as he flicked the wrist of the Rev Arm a few times to warm himself up for the challenge ahead.

"**You son of a bitch.**" Ragna sweared as Rachel couldn't help but chuckle in delight. "**Well things are starting to become interesting now. Mind if I join in on the fun for now?**" Rachel said, surprising both Ragna and Sora as the two men looked at her with some confusion as to what her plan was. "**It is just seeing you two fight the way you are right now is intriguing. And also ****I wish to see Mr Minakaze combat potential for myself.**" Rachel explained as Sora couldn't help but sigh at that.

He was already about to pick up the pace with Ragna the Bloodedge, now that he had to fight against this little girl and he doesn't know what she is capable of? Just another day in the Minakaze life where life seems to be after him for some reason. "**I don't mind… I just did not expect this happening right now.**" Sora said as Rachel got off her seat and the cat re-manifested itself as to it's normal self.

"**Be glad I am providing support for you Ragna the Bloodedge. You should be weeping by now**." Rachel said as Ragna scratched his head at the comment. "**Look I don't really care what you do… but just don't get in my way alright rabbit.**" Ragna said as Rachel simply giggled hearing that, eager to start testing Sora as soon as possible as Sora simply cracked his neck before returning to stance. '_**Don't focus on fighting Sora, just focus on getting past Ragna and touching the girl.**_' Sora thought as Ragna made the first move once more.

With a quick punch, Ragna forced Sora to push it to the side as he used the hilt of the Aramasa and aimed for Sora's forehead. Sora himself managed to avoid getting hit by grabbing Ragna's wrist with the Rev Arm and tossing the attack to the side. As he did so, he gave Ragna a push to the side to offset his balance and charge for Rachel, the gap now open as Rachel herself was prepared to make getting to her much harder.

"**Very good. Let us see if you can handle this. Gil, Nago.**" Rachel said as her two familiars appeared. "**As you command princess!**" Her familiars said as the cat turned itself into a cannon and the red bat loaded itself into said cannon. "**Now fire.**" Rachel said as Nago fired Gill as it went flying towards Sora. Sora out of instinct, grabbed the projectile using the Rev Arm. As soon as he did, he looked at the projectile he had caught and became puzzled.

The projectile he had caught was not a circular object like a cannon ball but what appeared to be a red bat shaped crest that had gold trim on them. The projectile the cat cannon fired was weird enough but the weird projectile was soon pushed to the back of his mind when he noticed that the projectile started to gather electricity as he quickly tossed it away from him as he noticed Rachel float from the ground before opening her eyes and summoning out what appeared to be lightning from the sky right at the projectile he had just tossed.

"**Oh do be careful Mr Minakaze. The projectiles Nago fires out can be electrically charged. I have seen some people who have had the misfortune of experiencing it's fury.**" Rachel explained as Sora shivered hearing that, not wanting to experience lightning coursing through his body as he simply put his foot to the pedal and sprinted right towards Rachel, hoping that was it. As he did so, Rachel snapped her fingers, alerting Nago to continuously fire a series of projectiles and scattered them all over the floor.

"**With that warning, let us begin.**" Rachel said, snapping her fingers once more as various bolts of lightning came crashing to the ground, scattering itself all over the ground thanks to the projectiles placed that forced Sora to simply change the route that he had to take, forced to use the path that Rachel had created for him as it felt like he was going through several forks through a road or navigating a pile up at some freeway.

'_**Got to get closer… got to get closer!**_' Sora thought as he narrowed his focus towards finding the straightest path possible. It was when he noticed that Nago had stopped firing for a bit, he made a break for it, sprinting quickly forwards as Nago managed to fire a shot at the last minute aimed right for Sora. Raising the Rev Arm once again, he grabbed the projectile that Nago had fired as this time, now knowing what he knew, he decided to take advantage of the lightning and turn it to his favor.

"**Nago, Gil. Let's do it.**" Rachel said as she slowly floated herself off the air. As soon as she did, Sora immediately tossed the projectile right back at Rachel. But the projectile did not hit her as that was where he did not aim the projectile to hit but instead it struck Nago himself as the lightning came coursing down and striking the familiars, zapping them well before making them collapse in shock as Rachel was amused by this.

"**I GOT YOU!**" Sora yelled as he jumped into the air, raising his arm, ready to touch her. As soon as he did so however, he felt something strange hit him. A stillness that he could not explain as his body felt like it had suddenly become a rock. He raised his arm out trying to touch Rachel but it was like the wind suddenly picked up and stopped him from doing so. '_**What...What the fuck!?**_' Sora thought as he felt a presence suddenly approach him from behind as Ragna had transformed the Aramasa into it's scythe form.

"**Don't forget about me!**" Ragna shouted, swinging the Aramasa in a circular manner as Sora had to take an emergency roll to the side to avoid being sliced in half. Just what had happened? It felt like the wind had come to a complete stop when he tried to move. Sora had no time to let his mind linger on stuff like that because Ragna was now attacking him, forcing him to dodge as he really had no intentions of trying to attack back and was only fighting back to stop Ragna from fighting.

Even if he wanted to take some higher moral ground and just let Ragna hit him what was going to be the point? He would suffer unnecessary damage and get hurt for something that might not even be possible. While it is important to try and end things as peacefully as you can, Sora has learned over the years it shouldn't come at the cost of your own well being except for when you know you have to go all out. And right now it is not the right time for Sora to go all out.

"**Oh don't worry. I haven't forgotten about you Ragna.**" Sora said as he raised the Rev Arm to block Ragna's next series of attacks, even pushing a few to the side and striking Ragna at the chest and face to try and condition Ragna into adopting a less risky play style. All Sora could do at this moment was just use as much of his ability as he can while trying to hold back for an emergency as he managed to find the space needed to palm strike Ragna away from him.

But again, Sora could feel the winds acting strangely as Ragna did not get blown as far as Sora would have liked. In fact, Ragna barely moved at all as he was already in range to swing a counter punch right at Sora's face, forcing Sora to dodge a possible knockout blow from out on nowhere. "**And I do hope you have not forgotten about me too Mr Minakaze.**" Rachel said as Sora couldn't help but start to suspect that she was somehow responsible for the wind and the way it was currently behaving.

"**Thanks for the assist rabbit. Now can you just keep doing that for now?**" Ragna said as that confirmed Sora's suspicion that Rachel was somehow manipulating the wind around her. The how was still something that eluded Sora but he did not care right now, he needed to focus on the fight ahead of him as he pushed Ragna's attack to the side once more before trying to make a break for Rachel. But Rachel was one step ahead of him and had fired a projectile right at Sora's face, causing it to hit him and allowing Ragna to grab the back of his shirt and toss him back to face him.

As he did so, Ragna tried to go for a ground stab. Sora managed to roll his head away from the attack and kicked Ragna away from him as Sora couldn't help but start to feel the odds were starting to get away from him. He could choose to switch things and start using his drive but he knew he still had time to try and not resort to that. He didn't need to do something as excessive at that as he got up his feet and decided instead to mix up his attacks.

As soon as Ragna swung his sword, Sora immediately raised the Rev Arm to block the attack. As soon as he did so, he quickly changed it back to the Rev Blade and swung wide, creating distance between him and Ragna as he quickly sheathed the blade and ran fast to past Ragna while his balance was still off. As soon as Ragna saw this, he changed the Aramasa to it's scythe form to try and use the blunt edge of the blade to trip Sora up.

As soon as Sora felt the blade touch his feet, he immediately raised it up, tipping himself forward and was about to make him fall on his ass. As soon as that was going to happen, Sora immediately swapped the Rev Blade back to the Rev Arm to do a perfect roll and recovery. As soon as he recovered, he immediately kicked the scythe back at Ragna, causing the blade to strike him and distracting him long enough for Sora to make his way right at Rachel's face once again.

But Rachel had not been idle, having laid a series of traps ready for Sora to spring them the moment he took a step on them. Sora however ignored the traps placed in front of him, jumping past them to dodge the lightning that was slowly surrounding him. Rachel then decided to make it even harder for Sora by using her wind to blow some of the already placed traps right at Sora's face, trying to surprise him as simultaneously unleashed lightning that would have struck anybody if he did not dodge correctly.

"**I GOT YOU! ****AGAIN!**" Sora yelled as he immediately dived forwards, having noticed that Rachel was too busy trying to summon lightning and wind at the same time that she had exposed her flank. He raised his hand, ready to touch her but Rachel herself was not done as she floated herself off the ground, alarming him when he heard the sounds of a distortion drive activate as Rachel simply smiled.

"**Baden-Baden Lily.**" Rachel simply said with a calm grace on her voice as lightning exploded right on her, forcing Sora to touch it as the lightning coursed through his veins like no other, causing him to fly all the way back to the wall where he had started. Sora wanted to swear badly at that moment as the lightning left his body, his clothes slightly charred as Ragna looked at Rachel at that moment. "**Don't you think that was a little too extreme rabbit?**" Ragna asked as Rachel simply smiled.

"**If I were not as forceful, then that shows that Mr Minakaze is not worthy of learning the truth.**" Rachel said, annoying Sora as he couldn't help but feel like he was blind sided by her at that moment. '_**God if you weren't the key to me learning about the mess I was in...**_' Before Sora could finish his thought, his phone began to ring. This prompted him to pick it up and see who it was calling him at that very moment.

For him to see that it was Makoto that was calling him in that moment alarmed him as that meant she wanted to know something. "**Give me a second.**" He said to Ragna and Rachel as he answered the call without hesitation. "_**Hello Makoto? What's going on?**_" Sora questioned as Makoto breathed a sigh of relief on her end. "_**Oh it's nothing. I'm just letting you know that we are at the spot I said that we should meet up. Just wondering how is your search for Rachel going?**_" Makoto questioned as Sora sighed and smiled.

* * *

Sora: _**It's going well. I found her actually**_

Makoto: _**Really!? What...What did you ask her?**_

Sora: _**Well I asked her how Hunter is doing and she said she's taking care of him… other than that, she's currently testing me to see if I am worthy to know about what's going on**_

Makoto: _**A test? Why is she even doing a test all of the sudden**_

Sora: _**I don't know and I honestly don't care. All I want to do is just complete this already so I can go and see you. I can't help but get worried for you right now.**_

* * *

As Sora conversed with Makoto, Ragna and Rachel simply observed him, noticing that his formerly raised guard was now lowered a bit, as if hinting how close he was to the person he was conversing with. "_**Aww, thanks for the concern Sora. But I can assure you that..**_." Makoto paused and that pause gave Sora something to worry about as he himself didn't say anything, fearing something was going on. "_**I got to go now Sora… something came up. Just meet up with me at the spot like we promised.**_" Makoto said before abruptly ending the call.

"_**Makoto?!**_" Sora said, raising his voice at the sudden turn of events as he noticed that Makoto had ended the call for some reason. This was enough to make him want to end this charade of a test as soon as possible as he stared right at Ragna and Rachel with a focus on his eyes. "**Come on you two, give me everything you got. I got to go now and I am not going to waste anymore time.**" Sora said, his voice now serious as his gut was telling him to end this test quickly.

"**Look man. You can tell us what's...**" but before Ragna could finish his sentence, Sora had already appeared in front of him, alarming both him and Rachel as he was just standing by the wall before hand. How did he suddenly appear right in front of Ragna with no warning as he gave Ragna a backhand slap with his normal fist to create some distance as Rachel wasted no time and continued to fire projectiles right at his way.

Without even blinking this time around and with something on the line, Sora simply changed the Rev Arm back to the Rev Blade and swatted a few of the projectiles to the side. As he did so he swung the Rev Blade back to his back as Ragna tried to attack him from behind using his fist, clanging with metal instead as he used the momentum to hurl the Rev Blade right at Rachel's feet, much to her chagrin at the barbarism in display in front of her.

But she had no time to speak of such barbarism as Sora was quickly making his way towards her, his focus fully in display as Ragna managed to place himself between him and Rachel in the process. "**STOP RIGHT THERE!**" Ragna shouted as he quickly gathered Seithr right into his arm, ready to grab Sora with it but Sora was not fazed. In fact his eyes were that of a calm storm as in front of both him and Rachel, he began to flicker for a bit.

Then in a blink of an eye, Ragna swung his massive Seithr hand into the air, grabbing nothing while Rachel felt a hand tap her shoulder as she quickly turned to see Sora standing right next to her, one foot on the Rev Blade and the other on the ground as she couldn't believe what she had just witnessed. "**Did...I pass your test Rachel?**" Sora questioned seriously as Rachel was quick to regain her composure after witnessing something like that.

"**Indeed… you have.. ****Mr Minakaze.**" Rachel said, her mind struggling to process what she had experienced with what she had seen. As an observer, she has always known that phenomena intervention was something that happens in the world on a regular basis. But to experience that an eerily similar phenomena in the span of seconds while still being aware of what was supposed to happen… it confirmed a suspicion she had about Sora as she wondered what question Sora was going to ask her at that moment.

"**Good… I would like to ask you my question but not right now. Something came up and I need to get back right now.**" Sora said with a seriousness in his voice as he needed to get back to Makoto urgently as he held up one of the lightning rods that Rachel used against him. "**So I am going to take this instead and use this as my I.O.U instead. The next time we meet, I better get the whole answer from you. No bullshit with me alright.**" Sora said with a serious voice as Rachel calmly nodded her head before Sora grabbed the Rev Blade.

"**Sorry things had to end abruptly Ragna. I have something that just came up and I need to go now.**" Sora said as Ragna himself was struggling to process how fast everything ended. "**Woah wait a minute. What did you just do!? and why didn't you do that earlier!?**" Ragna questioned as Sora simply stood still, calmly taking a deep breath as he looked at Ragna. "**It's complicated. I can't just use it willy nilly. And I wasn't trying to exert myself too much. I was trying to avoid using it.**" Sora said as this reminded him of something.

"**Oh yeah, I kept Ragna conscious. I better you to answer all of the question I have for you the next we meet Rachel.**" Sora said as like the first two times he did so, he vanished completely again, sending chills down Ragna's spine as the way he appeared and disappeared simply reminded him of a ghost as Rachel herself simply stared right at where Sora stood, her interest in the man piquing like never before as she couldn't help but be troubled by what she had seen.

"**To think… that the error had an ability like so… just how aware is he of his true nature?..**" Rachel wondered as while Rachel and Ragna spent the time trying to recompose themselves, Sora was already running back to where Makoto was, using his drive to accelerate his path while running normally. His mind was not on finding out what was going on with his life at that moment but on what was happening with Makoto and what prompted her to abruptly end the phone call like she did. All he cared about at that moment was simple.

* * *

"_**Just what the hell is going on Makoto?...**_"** Sora simply said in a voice that expressed worry like no other.**

* * *

**G****REETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING RIGHT NOW!? Well… a few months we have spent in quarantine. How are you guys doing cooped up in your homes? Not going insane in the process? Something I have just realized about quarantine, doesn't quarantine feel like solitary confinement? I mean you aren't completely isolated from the things you can do and you can leave if there are things you need to do but doesn't quarantine have the same premise as solitary confinement in every other aspect? I dunno something to think about I guess.**

**WELL IN ANY OTHER CASE, WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TO SORA MINAKAZE!? WILL HE BE ABLE TO MAKE IT IN TIME TO MEET UP WITH MAKOTO!? AND JUST WHAT IS GOING ON WITH MAKOTO NANAYA TO WARRANT HER ENDING A CALL QUICKLY!? JUST WHAT IS GOING TO BE THE FATE OF THESE TWO!? Well.. in any other case, let us see what has fate in store for these two shall we?**

_**Saikuron'inpakuto**_ =** Cyclone Impact**


	29. Canon 28: On The Other Side Of The Story

(The Latest Canon has arrived, what is in store for the people involved in this? Well, let's find out together shall we.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 28

Previously on Canon Distortion

Sora Minakaze was in the middle of an important test that was laid in front of him by Rachel Alucard. All he had to do was simply touch her but Ragna the Bloodedge proved to make that as difficult for him to do so without the use of his Drive. However when he received a phone call from Makoto Nanaya only for her to abruptly disconnect the call, he proceeded to do so in order to quickly rush to where he was supposed to meet her... but this is not about Sora Minakaze right now, it's about what happened before to Makoto Nanaya..

And now, the continuation of Canon Distortion

* * *

In order to make sense of the series of events that happened beforehand, it is important to first turn back time to a few minutes earlier, in fact, before the time before Sora even began his test with Rachel to be precise. During that exact same moment, Makoto was busy escorting Noel to the drop point but in order to do so in a safe manner, she had been leading her through a series of narrow alleyways designed to minimize their exposure to crowds and people spotting them.

"**Is this really necessary Makoto?**" Noel questioned as while she could understand her friend wanting to make sure that they were not spotted by anybody, especially any potential NOL officers that might be roaming around, this level of secrecy seemed to be redundant when they could just blend in with the crowds instead using their NOL Uniforms. While Makoto could understand her skepticism about being this secretive, Makoto had her reasons for guiding them through the maze like alley ways of Kagutsuchi.

"**I know it looks like we're wasting time but... I would rather place it even more safe than normal rather than try to risk it by walking outside. Besides, that's why we woke up early to get moving already.**" Makoto explained as Noel couldn't help but giggle at that. Though there was something that lingered in her mind in regards to that. "**Speaking of waking up early... who was that person that you were talking to when I woke up Makoto? Was he someone from Sector Seven?**" Noel questioned as Makoto froze for a bit.

How was she going to answer this question that wouldn't make her sound like a lunatic in the process. "**Well... Let's just say he's ummm...more than just a friend at the moment.**" Makoto said as Noel became curious at that before trying to piece together what Makoto meant by those words. "**Do you mean... work sense or private sense?"** Noel questioned as Makoto did not know how to respond to that weird question. "**Ummm...Private sense?**" Makoto said as Noel immediately began to think about a couple of possible theories that her friend might be hiding from you.

"**Private...**" Noel mumbled as her mind went racing at that moment with thoughts… thoughts that may not have been pure as her face suddenly erupted out with steam. "**So...You...You mean like….birds and bees more than friends?**" Noel said as Makoto was both bewildered and confused by the statement her friend had just said. How was she supposed to react to the fact that Noel Vermillion, the most innocent friend she knew, was now asking her if she was having a sexual relationship with her boyfriend or if she was simply cock blocking him.

"**I...I simply have no comment to that weird ass statement you made.**" Makoto said, making the gesture of penetration with her hands to simply confuse Noel even more as more of a way to lighten the mood and hopefully ensure her friend gets the message that her previous question might have been a lot lewder than she had intended as Noel flustered immediately. "**I-I-I DON'T MEAN IT LIKE THAT MAKOTO! I MEAN I DID BUT….**" Noel simply silenced herself at that moment, too embarrassed to say another word.

"**Don't worry Noellie, I promise not to tell Hunty about what you have become.**" Makoto said as this was this chance she had been looking for to redirect the conversation and where it was about to head to beforehand as Noel simply turned red and got to her knees unable to believe that she asked her friend such a perverted question in the first place as Makoto patted her friend on the back. "**In any case, he's not my sex friend if that is the answer you are looking for**." Makoto said with a bluntness in her voice as Noel soon shook off her embarrassment and walked faster.

"**T-Then we should hurry towards the meeting location right?! We shouldn't be keeping the person waiting for us up there for so long.**" Noel said as she tried to pick up the pace, wanting to shake off her embarrassment about the current situation and just go to a place that was much safer for the time being. As she did so, Makoto couldn't help but stare right at Noel as she allowed her mind to drift for a bit wondering what was going to be both her and Sora's next step once they reconvene at the meeting location.

"**Hey Noel...I am just going to warn you about something.**" Makoto said, making her friend stop in the process of her walk to look at her in the eyes as Noel remained quiet, noticing the seriousness on her face. "**I...I think after I drop you off to Sector Seven… I won't be following you from there.**" Makoto said, surprising Noel greatly as she walked back up to Makoto and looked at her, her eyes told her that she wanted to know more as to what was going through her mind.

"**It's just… there's something that only I can do and I can't really protect you or Tsubaki right now. This is something only I can do.**" Makoto explained as Noel shook her head. "**Can't you tell me at least Makoto… as friends?**" Noel questioned as Makoto closed her eyes and shook her head. "**Sorry Noellie… I don't think I can right now.**" Makoto said as Noel quickly rushed up and took Makoto's hand. As soon as she did that, Noel immediately froze on the spot, not that Makoto noticed anyways.

"**I know what you're going to say Noel. We're friends aren't we? So why won't you trust me with this? Well… if I have to give a reason, it's more because I don't know if I can tell you in a way that wouldn't make me sound like a lunatic in the process. We're friends… no more than that but it's just that my life lately has turned into a crazy roller coaster and I am still trying to piece things together myself… all I can ask is that you be patient with me and let me deal with them in my own way.**" Makoto said, tightening her grip on Noel's hand, unaware that Noel had seen something she shouldn't have saw.

"**Huh? Is something the matter Noel?**" Makoto said, finally noticing her friend's rather grim expression on her face as this caused Makoto to suddenly tense up, wondering if she had spotted or sensed an enemy nearby them. "**Is there an enemy!?**" Makoto said as this brought Noel back to reality as she shook her head greatly. "**N-No! S-Sorry… I...I just….**" Noel stuttered as Makoto looked at her with a worried look before placing her hand gently on the girl.

"**Look Noellie, anything you got to say, don't hesitate to say it. I am always here to listen to whatever is on your mind, regardless of what you may think.**" Makoto said, trying to reassure her friend that everything was alright and that there was no need to have such fear with her around. Noel herself took a few minutes to calm herself before looking right at Makoto. "**It's alright… I just got spooked that's all...**" Noel questioned as Makoto couldn't help but become a bit suspicious about that statement as she leaned in closer, hoping to get to the girl

* * *

Makoto: **Come on Noellie, You don't need to be so secretive around me. I can understand if there's something on your mind. You can just say it.**

Noel: **Really? Are you sure?**

Makoto: **When you say it like that, it makes it sound like you saw something really spooky you know Noellie.**

Noel:** I know… It's just...I don't know how to tell you this at all.**

Makoto: **Trust me, for the past few days, my life has been a bit of a roller coaster myself. So anything you say right now won't really faze me by that much.**

* * *

As soon as Makoto said those words, Noel couldn't help but take a deep breath. She was originally going to just play off what she had seen but with Makoto being this insistent that she told her, Noel simply had no choice but hope that Makoto, A.) Doesn't laugh off what she was about to say and think she has gone insane or B.) Does the complete opposite and thinks that Noel herself had somehow become insane in the process and try to administer some sort of aid towards her.

"**Alright… here goes...**" Noel said as she took a deep breath. Makoto herself could sense the seriousness coming out of Noel's voice at that moment as Noel grabbed Makoto's hands firmly and stared right into her eyes to ensure Makoto was just looking at her. "**Well…**** You see… for the past few days… I've… I've been experiencing visions.**" Noel explained as Makoto simply nodded her head and remained quiet, understanding that she shouldn't speak but allow her friend to speak out her mind.

"**When...When I touch people...there is a chance when I do so… that I see these visions… So when I touched you just now… I saw those visions.**" Noel explained as this surprised Makoto, wondering what Noel could have seen to cause her to have such a grim reaction to her face. "**When I touched you… What I saw… I… wanted to believe it was all just nothing but… But…**" Noel stuttered as her hands continued to tighten their grip on Makoto, not wishing to part anytime soon as Makoto herself steeled for what was going to come next.

"**Tell me Makoto… What… What were you doing in Ibukido.. and why did you see… another me?**" Noel questioned as the moment Noel said those words, Makoto felt the sweat that was behind her back simply stop and her whole being simply freeze on the spot. She was prepared for anything… anything but that as she scratched the back of her neck. "**Uhhh… Except for that.**" Makoto said as she knew that this was going to eat up into their time if she explained everything as she looked around for a bit.

"**Alright…**** How do I explain this with the minimal amount of words needed?**" Makoto said as despite time being a limited resource, if she did not at least try her best to explain what Noel had seen, it's going to cause more problems than what a simple waste of time would normally cause. "**I was Ibukido for a mission but then ended up going through a lot of shit that involved a whole different world, crazy shit, Colonel Clover, a gothic girl by the name of Rachel Alucard and finally getting back here...**" Makoto said, deciding to leave a pause as Noel simply stared at her blankly, waiting for her to first digest all of that before she continued.

"**When I came back to this world… I got the chance to find out what was hiding in Ibukido. What I found was simply bodies… bodies of you. For what purpose were they were made I don't know but… I'm sorry if I am speaking way too fast and you're not able to process this but you saw it so you know I am not lying to you.**" Makoto said as she made Noel look at her in the eyes, allowing her to directly stare at one of her closest friends and speak to her what her heart truly wanted to say.

"**And it doesn't change the fact that the person in front of me, Noel Vermillion, is my one and only friend and nothing in this world can change that.**" Makoto said as Noel finally smiled and nodded her head, in agreement with what was being said to her. "**I'm...I'm glad you told me all of this Makoto. Granted I guess this is not the way you wanted to tell me all of this but at least I don't feel like you're trying to hide things from me.**" Noel explained, bringing relief to Makoto that her friend trusted her even now.

"**And is that why you have to go after seeing me off?**" Noel asked as Makoto simply nodded her head. "**I know you're probably thinking about a lot of things, Tsubaki included. But I need to do this Noellie. Only I can do something like this.**" Makoto explained as Noel looked down at Makoto's feet before sticking out her finger in a pinky promise. "**Then promise me… when we go to deal with Tsubaki… We will deal with her together. As her friends.**" Noel asked as Makoto quickly nodded her head.

"**Of course Noel. We will deal with Tsubaki.. as her friends.**" Makoto promised as Noel took a big deep breath as Makoto accepted her pinky promise. Was the pinky promise really necessary for someone like Makoto who she knew has a heart of gold even if she doesn't openly express it? Not really… and maybe that's the point. Maybe she needs this pinky promise more for herself, to steel her resolve to help her friends to the best of her abilities despite how weak she was.

"**Is there more on your mind Noellie?**" Makoto questioned as Noel immediately shook her head. "**N-NO! Not really!.. Hehehe**" Noel responded, laughing a bit before turning around and facing towards the alley. "**W-Well time is running out for us and we should get going right? That Sector Seven agent is not going to wait for us forever now!**" Noel said, trying to stuff down her deep thoughts down. Makoto wanted to respond but knew very well herself what it's like trying to just suppress the thoughts that run in her mind.

"**Sure Noellie. We should get going. But don't worry about stopping us if you need a break. You were always bad with the physical activities and I doubt you still like getting sweaty**." Makoto teased as Makoto began to run, hoping that would help her friend get things off her mind as Noel couldn't help but pout at that. Then as such, as quickly as the conversation the two had, the conversation was quickly ended. Both Makoto and Noel felt that there was more that needed to be said but that could wait until later.

Right now, at this very moment, their goal was clear. Get the hell out of Kagutsuchi and meet up with Professor Kokonoe who will arrange to protect Noel. From there, Makoto will try to figure out things with Sora. Speaking of which, she should probably consider calling the man and informing him that both her and Noel were on their way to the meeting, as a way to make sure that he is in time to leave Kagutsuchi and not get abandoned.

As the two reached the point where they needed to make the call to inform Professor Kokonoe that they were in the location, Makoto figured now was the best possible time for that. "**Hey Noel. You go on ahead for a bit. I need to make a quick call.**" Makoto said as Noel looked at her, curious to what this call was about but knew that Makoto was probably contacting someone important if she has to make this call right now. "**Alright Makoto, I will make sure I don't get spotted. But please hurry.**" Noel begged as Makoto smiled and nodded.

As Noel ran ahead to go and see if the coast was clear, Makoto pulled out her phone and dialed up Sora's number. She was rather glad that she managed to get his number since at least she now had a way of communicating with the man that did not involve the usage of some vague communication tool like signal fires or messenger birds. Not that would have stopped Sora from trying to implement them to varying degrees of success if he could but regardless, as the phone began to ring, Makoto herself couldn't help but feel anxious.

What if he suddenly disappeared while taking this call? She did not know the true capability of this god and thus did not know if that was even a possibility to consider. What if he gets attacked instead by some unknown assailant mid call and is forced to hang up on her? What if he trips and falls down a conveniently placed hole that led to nowhere? Makoto could feel her mind begin to irrationally think about possible flaws and fears that could come to fruition as she desperately tried to push them to the back of her mind.

'_**There's no way something as silly as that would actually happen? The gods of this world don't have that much power… right?**_' Makoto thought as the more she began to think, the more she began to fear. Just how powerful was this god? Is it like the gods of various religions she has read about? Or even more powerful than them in every way? Is it even possible for a god to erase a person out of existence like snapping a finger? Or is there a logical reason as to why Sora's existence was being erased.

But soon, her worries came to an end as Sora picked up the call. "_**Hello Makoto? What's going on?**_" Sora said. His voice simply breathed in relief that she never thought she wanted, all the emotions she had felt and the thoughts she was thinking about before finally left her mind as she smiled and made sure she took a deep breath away from the phone to ensure Sora did not hear her worry. "_**_**Oh it's nothing. I'm just letting you know that we are at the spot I said that we should meet up. Just wondering how is your search for Rachel going?**_**__**" **__**Makoto replied as she couldn't help but engage on a conversation with him from there.**_

"_**I**__**t's going well. I found her actually**_." Sora said as that brought some relief Makoto's way. Good. He had managed to find her. She was going to worry if he didn't and if he was going to consider staying in Kagutsuchi to keep searching for her. "_**Really!?**_" Makoto said with surprise, composing herself as she knew she needed to continue. "_**What did you ask her?**_" Makoto questioned as she had hoped that Sora's response to that would be at least a good one.

"_**Well, I asked her how Hunter is currently doing and she said she's taking care of him.**_" Sora said, surprising Makoto as she would have thought that Sora would have gotten straight to questioning Rachel about his own personal problems. '_**I guess he has grown in a way I guess.**_' Makoto thought as she diligently listened to what else he had to say. "_**Other than that, she's currently testing me to see if I am worthy to know about what's going on?**_" Sora said as this intrigued Makoto

"_**A test? Why is she even doing a test all of the sudden?**_" Makoto questioned as she wondered why Rachel would be doing a test like this. Was there really need to do something like that? Wouldn't that make Sora hungrier to find out the answers that he wants? When she asked Rachel herself, she was given her answers. So why Sora and why do it right now? "_**I don't know and I honestly don't care. All I want to do is just complete this already so I can go and see you.**_" Sora said, Makoto able to feel the worry come out of his voice as she smiled at that.

"_**I cannot help but get worried for you right now.**_" Sora continued as Makoto's heart was fluttering at that moment. If it wasn't for the situation right now, she would have been giggling with joy and be all over him. "_**Aww, thanks for the concern Sora. But I can assure you that...**_" Before she could say anything else, a sudden chill suddenly crawled up her back. "_**KKKYYYAAAA!**_" A scream, let out by Noel immediately broke her out of this stupor as she looked up at the direction of the scream.

'_**What the? Noel!?**_' Makoto thought as she waited for a response but didn't hear anything. The silence greeting her after that scream was enough to make Makoto want to end the call immediately. "_**I got to go now Sora, Something came up. Just meet up with me at the spot like we promised.**_" She said, hanging up on the phone and quickly rushing up the stairs. She knew that what she did would most likely prompt Sora himself to hurry so that's not on her mind. What was on her mind was Noel as the scream she had let out sounded like that of terror.

"**What happened Noellie!?**" Makoto screamed as soon as she reached to the top of the floor, wondering what happened to make her best friend scream like the way she did. Noel herself didn't need to say a word as the scene in front of Makoto was enough to answer her question. In front of her was the red devil himself, Iron Tager. But he wasn't standing, in fact he was down on the ground heavily injured and damaged as standing on his head was the familiar green hair that Makoto was starting to grow to hate.

"**Oh? To think we would meet like this again. Makoto Nanaya and Noel Vermillion.**" Hazama mused as he spun his knife a little bit before pocketing the balisong knife with a smooth swiftness. "**W-What are you doing over here!?**" Makoto questioned as Hazama sighed and rubbed his hair. "**I am the head of Intelligence for a reason you know. There is a good reason for that.**" Hazama said as he walked towards the two girls.

"**And besides... I think it's about time I stopped girl's playtime now. You have a job to do doll.**" Hazama said as Noel looked at him confused. A job? What job? She was a traitor to the NOL? What could that possibly mean? "**W-What are you talking about?**" Noel said in fear as Makoto instinctively walked in front of her, shielding the small girl with her body, her eyes glaring at her former boss as he simply shook his head.

"**Oh you know, Your job in killing a god.**" Hazama said as both girls were left confused by this. A god? What on Earth was this man talking about now? Noel was thinking about how on Earth was she supposed to kill a god. Makoto was thinking about the fact that the way Hazama spoke implied the god he was speaking about had a physical shape of sorts for some reason. "**I...I Don't understand.**" Noel said, shock running through her mind as Hazama simply grinned.

"**Oh you don't need to know or understand. All you need to do is just be a good little doll and help me slay god.**" Hazama taunted as Makoto instinctively formed a barrier between herself and Noel. "**You aren't taking Noel anywhere you creep!**" Makoto shouted raising her fists, ready to defend her. Hazama couldn't help but sigh at this as he scratched his head before revealing irritation at his eyes. "**You know… You are really starting to grow to be a thorn on my side Makoto Nanaya.**" Hazama said as he cracked his hand when he clenched his fist.

"**You know… I am really starting to get tired of seeing your face.**" Hazama said as his eyes glared right at Makoto's direction, making Makoto want to freeze but adrenaline prevented her from doing so. "**Time and time again, you ruined my plans. First it was all the way in another timeline where you ruined everything. Then now, with you constant interference no matter where I go.**" Hazama said, his voice raising with both annoyance and anger as veins were popping by his face, the anger now clearly becoming visible and transparent.

"**So you know what… screw Relius and his plans for you. I will serve you up to him in a fucking body bag!**" Hazama yelled as he leapt for Makoto. This prompted her to push Noel to the side for her safety as she blocked his lunge with her tonfas. "**OUROBOROS!**" Hazama screamed as the green chain emerged from the sky, threatening to crash itself right onto her head at full speed which she managed to dodge after kicking him away.

As soon as she did, Hazama grabbed the chain and pulled himself back at Makoto, whipping out his balisong knife and thrusting it in a vicious manner. Makoto pushed it to the side but felt it just cut her thigh as she winced in pain before feeling a knee land on her face, stunning her for a second as he attempted to thrust his knife right at her chest. Makoto, realizing what he was trying to do, used her tonfas to block the attack and create distance between him and her.

"**STOP TRYING TO RESIST AND JUST DIE!**" Hazama yelled, his anger fully releasing as he once again lunged himself right for Makoto, forcing her to dodge as much as she can as he barely allowed her to attack, thrusting several times with his knife while using Ouroboros as a battering ram to try and slam into Makoto's stomach. His killing intent leaking out through his knife with each thrust he made, sending a chill down her spine each time his knife was almost close to landing a blow, each one fatal if connected.

"**For too long you have been a thorn by my side! No longer! I will end you here and now you rodent!**" Hazama yelled, as Makoto ducked another knife swipe only for her to see Ouroboros charge right for her face, the maw open and ready to bite down on her face as she didn't have any time to respond to this. But before she could feel the maw bite down on her face, the Maw itself was blown off course, catching Makoto by surprise as Hazama was soon met with a barrage of bullets as he quickly dodged out of the way.

"**No you won't captain!**" Noel shouted, the barrel of Bolverk smoking as Hazama ticked as Noel continued to lay down fire, forcing Hazama to take cover as she quickly rushed to Makoto at that moment to take if she was alright. "**Are you alright Makoto?!**" Noel questioned as Makoto looked at her surprised before accepting the hand that was offering to pick her up. "**I'm good Noellie. Listen, you have to get the hell out of here right now.**" Makoto said, surprising Noel.

"**I know you don't want to hear this but Hazama's after you, not me. I can stall him for you while you get away.**" Makoto said but Noel shook her head. "**But he's going to kill you! I can't let you be bait like that!**" Noel said, Makoto understanding her friend's worry. "**I know, but he's going to be so focused on trying to kill me that you will at least be able to get away from here while I buy us some time.**" Makoto said as Noel shook her head even more.

"**Listen to me Noel. He needs you for something. He told you himself. If you get captured, then what about Tsubaki? How are we going to save her together If you end up caught?**" Makoto said, trying to reason with her friend with logic as she knew what the risk entailed if she used herself as bait. But Noel this time was not going to have any of it. She failed to reason with Tsubaki and has to deal with the fact she's slowly losing her vision because of her, she's not going to let her other friend use herself as a sacrificial lamb to run away.

"**No Makoto. I am not going to run away. Not again.**" Noel said, her voice firm as Makoto wanted to object but the moment she saw the determination growing on Noel's face to stay, she suddenly felt like she couldn't resist Noel's objections anymore as she sighed sadly. "**Since when did you become so firm and resolute huh Noellie?**" Makoto said aloud as Noel became slightly surprised by that as Hazama got in front of the two women once more.

* * *

Hazama: **So? Are you going to run away again Lieutenant Vermillion?**

Noel: **No… and I am not going to let you boss me around Captain!**

Hazama: **Oh? Since when did you grow a backbone huh Doll?**

Makoto: **Noel's not a doll! She's a human being with feelings and as her friend I won't let you hurt her!**

Hazama: **Oh god shut up with the friendship talk. That shit makes me sick. Fine, allow me to show you how fickle your friendship really is! Once I am done with you rodent, I will make you remember your place Doll.**

* * *

Now that he isn't trying to hide it, Noel could feel it. She could feel malice simply leak out of the man as Makoto noticed her grip tightly on Bolverk, trying to steel her emotions as Makoto simply took a deep breath and tightened her fists. "**I promise to protect you in place of Hunter for the time being… So stay behind me alright Noellie.**" Makoto said, her words meant to inspire courage into the girl as Noel smiled at her friend's encouragement before looking back at Hazama with a serious expression.

* * *

**...As the two women steeled themselves for a battle that they have to face.**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING!? Well, We have already reached the half way point of the year. Who would have thought we would have reached this point, let alone have to deal with the current craziness in this world. That said, I won't let this author's note become too much of a political rant. We already have so much of that already happening around the world right now and I think we deserve a place where we can just get away from all of that. I hope you all do understand and agree with this.**

**SO WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TO MAKOTO NANAYA AND NOEL VERMILLION!? CAN THEY HANDLE THE VIOLENCE THAT IS HAZAMA'S RAGE!? JUST WHAT KIND OF MOVES WILL HE PULL OUT NOW THAT HE NO LONGER HAS TO HOLD HIMSELF BACK!? AND WILL SORA BE ABLE TO MAKE IT IN TIME TO HELP THEM IN THIS FIGHT!? Well… All these and more will be answered in the next chapter so read on there.**


	30. Canon 29: One's True Self And Reveal

(A New Canon Approaches. Let us see where the path starts to unfold for us once more and see what has fate in store for our heroes.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 29

Previously on Canon Distortion

Makoto Nanaya and Noel Vermillion were busy trying to make their way to escape from Kagutsuchi. In order to do so, they had to meet up with the Red Devil, Iron Tager in order to link up with Sector Seven and station Noel somewhere safe. However when they arrived at the site, Hazama, Makoto's former boss and resident dick showed up and injured him in the process. Now forced to fight against the foe in front of them if they wish to survive and try and meet up with their friend. Makoto Nanaya and Noel Vermillion raise their fists and weapons in anticipation for battle.

And now, the continuation of Canon Distortion

* * *

Sora Minakaze was running as fast as he could. His feet were taking him as fast as he could go. To speed himself up, he used his Rev Arm and started using some parkour methods to get to his destination faster. When Makoto called him and hung up on him suddenly. He dropped everything, including the point of the test and essentially cheated to get himself out of there quickly. He knew that he could have done it eventually but was it worth wasting time he knew he could be spending trying to reach Makoto before it was too late?

'_**Dammit Makoto, what the hell happened?**_' Sora thought as he stepped on a pipe and could hear it creak at that moment. In an instant, Sora deployed the Rev blade, switching it from the Rev Arm quickly and impaled the wall beside him as the pipe suddenly gave way completely, leaving him dangling briefly before he found his footing on the fire escape of a building. Sora's instincts were sharp but he knew he had wasted some time from that near fall.

'_**Dammit… I knew finding answers is rough but for it to become like this?**_' Sora thought as he decided to head up to the roof at that moment to try and see where he was so he could plot his next course. "**Indeed. The truth seems to always find a way to elude you Sora.**" A voice spoke as Sora's senses were on high alert at that moment, pointing his Rev Blade towards the direction of the voice. "**Woah Woah Woah! it's me! Me!**" The voice said before materializing in front of Sora, making him breath a sigh of relief when he realized it was Amy.

"**God dammit Amy. I am in the middle of being tense right now and you pick this moment, of all moments to show up? ****My girlfriend's in the middle of what is most likely danger right now and in your sagely wisdom you pick now of all times to show up!?**" Sora said, Amy understanding that the man was under a lot of stress and tension right now and couldn't unwind at this point. But before she could respond, Sora simply raised his hand and took a deep breath.

"**But...that's not being fair to you. You haven't been seeing what I have been going through and it would be wrong to just blame you like that and I apologize for it.**" Sora said, his mind returning to a more calm train of thought as Amy simply nodded her head. "**I understand. You are currently very tense right now after what happened with your girlfriend… I have some news to deliver you.**" Amy explained as Sora decided to sit down on the ground, realizing it was going to be a bit of a bombshell news for him to hear.

"**On this very day, foretold by my master. The cauldron of Kagutsuchi will open and a godslayer will be born.**" Amy said as Sora looked at her wondering what that meant. "**In times past, this event has happened the same and the result has been the same… It's flow has been predicable so far and now once again, the same is true for this time.**" Amy explained as Sora did not know where this was going. "**You must go to the cauldron in Kagutsuchi. Today in fact, and gaze into the cauldron. Only you can do so.**" Amy finished as Sora took a small deep breath before standing up.

"**I remember you mentioning the cauldron once before in the sewers… but you never mentioned anything about me having to look into it.**" Sora said as Amy simply nodded her head. "**I understand I never said those words… but regardless, the cauldron here is your main goal once you manage to rescue your girlfriend from whatever peril she may be in.**" Amy explained as Sora paused and looked down on his feet, his mind wondering what his next plan would be from there.

'_**If the evacuation plan is screwed and something is going on, that means that...**_' Sora wanted to finish his train of thought but he knew he needed to ask Amy something else. "**Does this cauldron need me and only me to look into it?**" Sora questioned as Amy tilted her head. "**I do not know the specifics, only that my master asked me to let you know to do so.**" Amy explained as Sora nodded his head at that before looking right at Amy. "**Then I am going to take my girlfriend with me to the cauldron then… is that alright?**" Sora questioned as Amy's eyes widened at that a little.

'**Now this...is an unprecedented development...indeed.**' Amy thought. Her master had told her that only Sora was necessary for this but hearing he wanted to bring his girlfriend with him… that worried her. "**I do not think it's wise for you to do such a thing.**" Amy cautioned but Sora simply shook his head at that. "**You may think that… but if I am going to head to the cauldron, it's got to be with her… if something bad has happened to her and she is hurt in any way I don't know or trust anybody in this town to take care of her. I am thinking about this with her in mind. I cannot just leave her all by herself again… not like that.**" Sora reasoned as Amy looked to the ground.

This was not what she had expected but she knew from just looking at him, he was not accepting any other answer. "**If you must do so… then please do it. I simply must warn you that you place her in greater danger if you choose to pursue this route.**" Amy cautioned as Sora simply took a deep breath before shaking his head. "**If I think about it rationally… both me and her, we are two people who just feel like we cannot be separate from each other for too long. Not after finally meeting after all these years..and knowing she remembers me.**" Sora said as Amy couldn't help but smile at hearing those words.

"**Of course… but please know that you bring her into a destiny that she might not be able to handle.**" Amy asked but Sora simply smiled and nodded. "**Thanks for at least granting me this small wish Amy… are you still going to keep the truth of my existence being erased from me a secret still or does this cauldron have something to do with it.**" Sora questioned, his eyes staring right at the woman as she gulped a little bit before nodding her head.

"**I have not been able to say much before because the promised day of it's opening had not arrived… but yes. The truth to your existence being wiped will be made clear the moment your eyes gaze into the cauldron.**" Amy explained, Sora relieved a bit that finally...after all this god damn chasing around, he would have the answers he's been looking for. "**I must warn you though… the truth will hurt not only just you… but the people who do remember you.**" Amy explained.

Sora was about to say something at that moment before he looked at her facial expression and eyes. While her face remained as stoic as they could be, he could see a kind of sadness in her eyes as they struggled to contain themselves from tearing up. Realizing that she was in deep thought and pain, Sora decided that he should drop his thoughts for the time being regardless of what his feelings may be and allow her to warn him without needing to say another word.

"**I understand Amy… Thanks for the warning.**" Sora explained as Amy slowly floated in front of him. "**Then I shall await for you at the cauldron… Sora Minakaze.**" Amy said as just like she came, she disappeared once more in front of his eyes as Sora laid his back on the ground. His mind racing with thoughts as he felt the excess adrenaline he had before suddenly rush out of his body as he couldn't help but take a deep breath as to what he had just experienced.

'_**Just what is waiting for me at the Kagutsuchi cauldron that is making Amy reluctant to share with me?.. and now that I think about it, what the hell is a godslayer?**_' Sora questioned as he took a deep breath and stood up, getting ready to head out at that moment. As if on cue, to interrupt that thought, Sora felt another presence coming up on him as he had the Rev Blade on the ready. His instincts told him a foe was coming his way as he got ready to cut up whoever came his way.

As the feeling of an enemy approaching him grew, he clutched his blade tighter than ever. His instincts told him that he needed to be ready for what was approaching him. As soon as the presence came closer, he immediately swung the Rev Blade only to stop just at the nick of time when he realized who he was swinging at. His blade had just barely nicked the neck of the man whose head he would have cleanly sliced off had he not done so as Ragna the bloodedge felt a bead of sweat drop down at that moment.

"**Jesus christ Ragna. You just had to spook me like that?**" Sora questioned as Ragna the Bloodedge felt the blade get pulled away from his neck as Sora sheathed it on his back and scratched his head. "**Look I can understand if I left you unsatisfied with our battle and you want me to fight you seriously with my full strength but I can't do that right now.**" Sora explained as Ragna took a deep breath, his life having nearly flashed in front of his eyes but he knew that he had to recompose himself.

"**I need to get going right now though. My girlfriend's in trouble and I need to make sure she's alright.**" Sora explained as Ragna grabbed him by his shoulder before taking a big deep breath. "**Look man… I don't think I was expecting that response from a guy I just met… especially since he just calmly pulls away a bladed weapon away from the neck of the man he just nearly sliced off his body!**" Ragna calmly shouted as Sora sweated at that, feeling Ragna's hand clench tightly on his shoulder.

"**I am not going to pick a damn fight with you… But at least show that you're sorry when you're apologizing dammit.**" Ragna complained as Sora scratched his head hearing that. "**As much as I want to listen out your complaints right now… I already stated I needed to go somewhere and I need to go now.**" Sora said as he placed his hand on Ragna's hand before pulling it off his shoulder, not in an aggressive manner but in a more calm manner.

"**But in any other case… I'm sorry for nearly cutting your head off. I thought you were an enemy and I am currently very tense right now so I am snapping at everything coming my way.**" Sora apologized as Ragna took a deep breath, understanding he was reacting in a manner that was not appropriate for that moment. "**I might be pushing you too hard with that. You were just reacting out of self defense anyways. I came at your blind spot and you simply reacted the way you do so.**" Ragna apologized himself.

"**In any case, what brings you here? I presume it's not to ask me for a second round?**" Sora questioned as Ragna scratched his head for a bit before looking at Sora. "**I was just on my way to the NOL headquarters here. There's something I need to do over there.**" Ragna explained as Sora was surprised to hear that. "**Well… I was planning on heading there with my girlfriend once I make sure she's alright and safe. I need to do something there as well.**" Sora explained.

Ragna's eyebrow raised at that. Why does this guy want to head to the NOL Headquarters all of the sudden? He most likely had no reason to do so but then again he just met the guy so he cannot judge him based on first impressions alone. "**In that case, I wish you luck with that.**" Ragna said as Sora simply cleared his throat to get Ragna attention. "**What do you want now?**" Ragna questioned as Sora took a deep breath before looking at Ragna in the eyes.

"**Why don't we team up together and head towards the headquarters together. There might be NOL patrols after what's been going on for the past few days and I highly doubt any secret shortcuts you might know are not being guarded at this point.**" Sora rationalized as Ragna tched, knowing that Sora was correct on his assumption. "**I agree with your statement on that but I can handle myself pretty well. I am not the grim reaper for nothing.**" Ragna answered as Sora nodded his head.

"**It's not going to be just your normal NOL soldier out there. They got members of the Zero squadron, specifically their captain Meifang LapisLazuli around here. What are you going to do if you meet her? Fight her like every other person you do and hope you can beat her?**" Sora questioned some more as Ragna did not expect to hear that. He had heard the rumors about Meifang but to hear that she was here right now simply made things more annoying for him.

"**How did things become so complicated like this.**" Ragna complained as Sora raised out a hand for him to shake. "**If we work together, we will be able to share the load. That way you don't have to worry about your back not being covered.**" Sora rationalized as Ragna bit on his lip hearing that. "**And tell me one good reason you won't just stab me in the back when we do reach the NOL Headquarters and surrender me for the money?**" Ragna questioned as Sora simply smirked.

"**I am an Otsunian Ragna the Bloodedge. If there is one things we Otsunians have is honor above all else. We don't see out on fellow criminals, especially if they are ones with such high bounties like yourself Ragna the Bloodedge.**" Sora said with a confidence in his voice as Ragna couldn't help but scoff at that. The thought of a nice looking guy being an Otsunian sounded preposterous to him, yet at the same time, it is well known in most circles that as long as you are criminal yourself, Otsunians will never backstab you.

"**I am not convinced. Just because you say you're from Otsu doesn't automatically mean I have to trust your word as bible.**" Ragna said, being cautious as his years of being on the run from the NOL have not made him loosen his guard as Sora simply sighed and looked at him in the eyes. "**I have no reason you backstab you. I gain nothing from doing so.**" Sora replied as this made Ragna raise his eyebrows.

"**Aren't you interested in my bounty? I am worth a lot of money you know.**" Ragna continued as he wanted to see what kind of person Sora truly was as Sora simply shook his head at that. "**There's no need for money. I have enough to save up for a lifetime. There's no need for me to keep on earning more money without purpose.**" Sora explained as this surprised Ragna once again. This guy was too good to be true. Not only was he willing to fully trust him, he was not interested in his bounty?

"**Like I said, still not convinced. You can easily say all of that and then backstab me. What are you going to do to prove to me you are serious about your word?**" Ragna said as Sora calmly took a deep breath and pulled out the Rev Blade, clutching his hand on the bladed edge and carefully cutting it in front of Ragna for him to see. The pain Sora felt was real and he wanted to scream but he knew he had to prove it to Ragna no matter the cost as he held out his bloody hand in front of him.

"**Because I swear by my blood. I won't betray you for any reason...**" Sora swore, the blood dripping down his fingertips as Ragna realized at this point how serious Sora Minakaze was with his word as he scratched his head a bit. "**Fine… I guess when you see something like that, even I have got to respect your guts kid.**" Ragna said as he walked up to Sora and held out his palm to begin healing it with healing ars magus.

"**After we fix up your hand, we are going to head towards where your girl is. Then we head towards the NOL Headquarters without wasting time.**" Ragna concluded as Sora simply nodded his head. Feeling the ars magus work it's magic as he felt glad he was able to prove his worth to Ragna. The question now lingering on his mind was what was going on with Makoto as he hoped that he wasn't wasting too much time with this as a simple thought raced in his mind.

* * *

'… _**I hope I am not too late… Makoto.**_'

* * *

As Sora and Ragna the Bloodedge made their way towards the meeting spot that Sora was supposed to meet Makoto at, Noel and Makoto were busy fighting for their lives. In front of them was Hazama as he was different from normal. He didn't seem to be his usual trickster self but instead possessed a sharp eyed grim expression. As they fought, Iron Tager was watching this from the sidelines, injured and unable to move as he could feel his comms with Kokonoe kick in.

"**Tager! What's going on over there!**" Kokonoe shouted in her static voice as Tager continued to analyze the situation in front of him. "**Professor… It's Noel and Makoto. They are currently fighting against Yuuki Terumi as we speak.**" Tager responded as Kokonoe bit her lips at that. She had not prepared for this and was hoping that those two would have not met him. "**Keep your eyes on the situation. I am going to see if I can pull enough of your systems self repair function so you can at least move out of there.**" Kokonoe said as Tager could simply grunt as he continued to stare at the situation in front of him.

As he did so, he saw Hazama expertly weave his way past Makoto and Noel's attempts to strike him. His slender body acting like a snake as he slipped past Makoto and bunted Noel in the head while pushing Makoto off him. Makoto retaliated by trying to go for another punch but a swift heel kick to her jaw stopped her from retaliating while swinging the chain of Ouroboros to cause Noel to become unbalanced before kicking her right at her side, causing both girls to fall to the ground as he created distance between the two.

"**Oh come on now, You call yourselves some of the NOL's elite? Now this is just getting sad now.**" Hazama replied, shrugging his shoulders as not a drip of sweat was present on his forehead as both Noel and Makoto felt a sense of frustration come over them. "**He's...He's strong.**" Noel said, panting a bit out of breath as she felt something irritating her about Hazama at that moment. "You don't say Noellie?" Makoto questioned as her gaze soon focused right back on Hazama she clicked her tongue.

"**I thought you were just some pencil pushing useless major Hazama? I never knew you had moves like that.**" Makoto taunted as Hazama did not bother giving her a response, his eyes simply rolling around in disgust as he simply stared right back at her. "**And I always thought you're nothing but a nut chewing skank of a rodent with the way you dress. And right now… I am for certain that from where I stand, you're also a useless rat.**" Hazama insulted as this got Noel riled up.

"**HOW DARE YOU TALK TO MAKOTO LIKE THAT!**" Noel yelled, catching Makoto off guard as much to her surprise, a small spark came out of Bolverk from Noel's heated words as Hazama simply smirked as Noel got back up her feet. This was the first time Makoto was seeing her friend behave in the way she did as normally she would be much more calmer. "**Oh? And what are you going to do Blondie? Cry like always?**" Hazama mocked as this triggered Noel into retaliating with even more gunfire.

As Hazama did a little dance to dodge the gunfire, Makoto used this as her chance to charge right at Hazama. Her fist raised charging as Noel fired a bullet that forced Hazama to create a barrier to block it as Makoto swung her fist right at Hazama's stomach. Makoto felt a slashing pain through her fist as she noticed Hazama having spun his balisong knife to guard him from her punch as he simply gave her a sly grin, mocking her for her attempt and her luck that she did not lose any fingers.

"**What's the matter? Come closer. I promise to give you a manicure that you won't forget.**" Hazama taunted as this annoyed Makoto. "**As if! Noel!**" Makoto yelled as she swiftly moved her body past Hazama to his back as Noel charged forward and pointed a barrel right at his face, pulling the trigger point blank. As he did so, Hazama was annoyed by this a bit as he quickly formed a barrier to block the shot while giving Makoto a swift kick at her stomach to stun her for a bit.

"**MAKOTO!**" Noel yelled as she looked at Hazama with anger in her eyes and began to fire several shots right at him. Her eyes were brimming with anger as for the past few days, her life has been a roller coaster if that was the nice way of putting things and with the way Hazama was mocking her friend for her trait, it simply was pissing her off as Hazama noticed. "**Oh? Getting angry on me now doll?**" Hazama taunted as Noel gritted her teeth and continued to let out more hail fire, allowing Makoto to escape back to her side.

"**What's the matter? Feeling frustrated for some reason? Feeling useless as usual?**" Hazama questioned as Noel shook her head greatly. "**S-SHUT UP! STOP IT! I WONT LISTEN TO YOUR...YOUR!**" Noel argued as Makoto was able to notice what Hazama was trying to do as she gritted her teeth. "**Damn you green haired snake.**" Makoto muttered underneath her breath with disgust as Hazama knew he had to keep on digging.

"**I mean… you are a doll after all...Doll.**" Hazama said, as Noel couldn't help but be reminded of the images she saw when she touched Makoto's hand. The images of multiple copies of her lined up in coffins before she shook her head, denying Hazama's words once again. "**STOP...STOP CALLING ME THAT! I AM NOT A DOLL! I AM NOT A DOLL! NOT A DOLL..**" Noel muttered before loudly yelling and turning Bolverk into it's shotgun form and firing a giant slug round right at him.

As Hazama felt the shot vibrate through his whole arm from his barrier, Makoto saw this as her chance to retaliate. "**Don't listen to him Noel!**" Makoto shouted as Noel continued to fire more slug shots, causing the barrier to lift up. Makoto contributed to this by swinging her fists violently towards the barrier, forcing Hazama to continuously try to keep the barrier as straight as possible to protect himself.

Noel suddenly stop firing her barrage when a painful raging headache struck her mind. Her knees shook, threatening to buckle as Hazama could see that she was close. So very close. But that was not his focus right now. His focus was on the woman who had been a thorn on his side for all too long. "**You damn son of a bitch! I'll cave that smug face in!**" Makoto yelled she managed to bash out the barrier completely as she charged up her fist, remembering the feeling she had when she first unleashed this distortion finish on the masked freak.

Using that same feeling, she unleashed the full extent of her power at that moment in one burst, first slamming her fist right into Hazama's stomach which made him look down not in pain but in annoyance as his face was soon met with an uppercut from Makoto's right arm, sending him flying into the air as once again, Makoto vanished from the ground and appeared in the sky as quick as Hazama was soaring in the air, her fist cocked back and ready to slam right into Hazama's face.

"_**PARTICLE! FLARE!**_" Makoto yelled as her fist shot out like a cannon aimed right for Hazama's face, threatening to send him down to Earth. She thought that this would have been a blow strong enough to force him to retreat but Hazama had other plans as his eyes opened, revealing a narrow yellow focused glare at her direction as his hat fell out of his head as they soared in the air.

Makoto could feel her whole body freeze up at that moment. What was this chill she had felt all of the sudden crawl up her body? It was as if she was staring right at death itself as she threw her fist right at Hazama's head. Her fist connected but it wasn't with Hazama's face but a mysterious blackish green energy as Hazama flew fast to the ground from the sheer force of Makoto's fist, wrapping himself around the same green energy to crash land on the ground safely.

As soon as Makoto's feet touched the ground, she immediately stood beside Noel, able to sense that something terribly wrong was about to happen. "**Don't get so cocky… Rodent… Doll.**" Hazama said as his voice sounded cold. There was no sign of the playful trickster that they knew as his eyes were focused, glaring right at the two. Their souls trembled at his gaze has his cold yellow eyes had never looked so terrifying before

"**I think I spent too much time playing with you two… It's time to put an end to this farce of a battle.**" Hazama said as Ouroboros began to swim around him like it was an actual living snake while his balisong knife spun around his hand in a careful rhythimic manner. Hazama was not cracking any jokes at this point as his eyes simply looked like they wanted to kill the two of thim. This immediately made Makoto look at Noel, worried for her friend as she sensed something terrible was going to happen.

What she saw instead was Noel looking unfocused, the anger she had suddenly gone and replaced by what Makoto could describe as a confused fear as she knew she had to snap her friend out of it. "**Noel! Focus!**" Makoto shouted as Noel simply looked at Makoto at that moment confused. It was in that moment Hazama chose to strike. "**OUROBOROS!**" Hazama's voice screamed, his voice like a whip cracking on the floor as the floating Nox Nyctores quickly charged towards Noel, the maw snapping like a real animal intending to maim it's foe.

When Noel realized what it was trying to do, she formed a barrier to try and protect herself out of sheer muscle memory. However it was simply out of pure instinct and since she was not trying to actively think about it, the barrier failed to hold up and was easily smashed in front of her eyes. "**KKYYAA!**" Noel screamed as she fell down to the ground on her ass, Bolverk sliding out of her hands and onto the ground as Makoto was alarmed by this.

"**HAZAMA!**" Makoto screamed, charging herself right at the green haired man, confident that her speed would allow her to get in close to the man and she can start another barrage. Hazama, like a predator focused on their prey, immediately glared right at Makoto's direction. "**Don't get cocky you stupid bitch.**" Hazama said with venom as he simply waited for Makoto to get closer, her fist ready to launch another attack as Hazama simply readied himself.

Makoto soon threw her punch but the moment she did so, the blackish green substance that surrounded Hazama immediately covered him, preventing her punch from landing as from out of nowhere, she felt her jaw get kicked heavily as Hazama came fazing out of the substance in a kicking motion, the force like she never experienced before as she went flying into the air. Ouroboros gave chase to her, slowly coiling itself around her before Hazama tugged on the chain, sending her rapidly towards the ground, creating a small crater upon her impact.

"**MAKOTO! GUH!**" Noel yelled as the dust cleared, showing Makoto sprawled on the ground, her body crumpled as Hazama simply walked towards Noel and without even saying a word, grabbed her by her uniform's collar and with a cold efficiency in his eyes, slammed his knees right into her stomach. Instantly causing her to black out as she fainted immediately. Hazama took a deep breath afterwards as he calmly reached for his hat on the ground, Makoto, bleeding from the left side of her forehead simply glared right at Hazama as another person came to the scene at that moment.

"**Ugh…**** It's you.**" A voice spoke in disgust as Meifang LapisLazuli made her appearance at that very moment, her ears having heard all of the commotion that was occurring at that very moment. "**And it looks like all the fun's down in the dirt too.**" Meifang complained as her eyes soon looked right at Makoto Nanaya, noticing her battered state. "**And you got to her too? I was kinda looking for her you know.**" Meifang continued, pointing towards Makoto as Hazama sighed.

"**What? You want her too? Well too fucking bad. She's caused me so much trouble and I cannot stand it anymore.**" Hazama said before tossing into Meifang's arms Noel as she looked at the unconscious blonde haired girl. "**But you came just in time… Help me bring her to the top of the base and make sure the headquarters is kept well secured.**" Hazama ordered as Meifang looked at him with annoyance in her eyes.

* * *

Meifang: **What the? The hell's this all about Hazama? I am not your delivery girl dammit.**

Hazama: **Well too bad! I am in a bad mood right now.**

Meifang:** Bad mood or not, I am going to do your bidding without knowing what the hell is going on**

Hazama: **Do you want to learn how you are going to save your precious lord? Then do as I say and get your fucking ass to the base and defend it! I don't want anybody unnecessarily butting in our business as we create the godslayer.**

Meifang:**… Fine, But I better get something good out of this. Fucking asshole.**

* * *

As soon as she received her orders, Meifang left with Noel in her hands. She did not look pleased however as she was simply angry at how her fun was forcibly taken away from her by the green haired man. The woman she was eager to see grow was viciously plucked from her hands, like a baby bird learning to fly being shot down by a hunter who was eager for dinner. As Meifang left the area, Hazama returned his focus on the bird in question as he hoisted her up into the air using Ouroboros.

"**Right… Now that it's just me and you… It's time for us to have some fun… RODENT.**" Hazama said as the chains of Ouroboros began to wrap themselves around Makoto, tightening around Makoto's body like a phyton or anaconda coiling around their prey to slowly choke the life out of them. "**Do you know of the trouble you have caused for me this whole time?**" Hazama taunted as Ouroboros's chains continued to coil around, painfully grinding it's chains all over Makoto's body.

Makoto panted in pain but in her eyes they still laid defiance. "**Oh I don't know, why don't you enlighten me...BOSS**" Makoto said before spitting on his face. Hazama calmly wiped the spit off his face as he motioned Ouroboros to coil out Makoto's right arm. His cold hands then touched her right hand's fingers before the chains full extended out, allowing Hazama to see Makoto's elbow before using his foot, snapping her arm in two.

The scream he heard as Makoto bellowed out in pain, her arm fully breaking from the full force of Hazama's brutality as the chains of Ouroboros made the pain worse by forcibly keeping her broken arm intact, strangling any life her right arm might have had out of it. "**Whoops. My foot slipped. So sorry about the arm.**" Hazama mockingly said as Makoto continued to glare right at Hazama's eyes. "**F-FUCK YOU ASSHOLE.**" Makoto yelled as Hazama simply looked at his prey.

* * *

**Eager to break her like so many other defiant bitches before her.**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! Well, this time is not going to be much of a long Author's note to be honest. I know I am leaving you guys in a kinda big cliffhanger but I felt like this was the best way to end the chapter for now. Normally I would go on about asking how real life is holding up for you but with the way the world is getting out of hand right now, I think that question of mine has been answered for now.**

**As for what happens next? Well… If you really want to find out what happens next then stay tuned. Though I must warn you. You won't like what you will see next time so yeah. If you hate seeing your favourite squirrel girl get tortured, then I don't blame you. If you are brave enough to see what happens next, you might learn a few things. In any case, See you all in the next chapter which I hope to post really soon. I promise.**


	31. Canon 30: The Snake's Revelation

(The Latest Canon has arrived. Let us not waste any time and just get right into it.)

P.S:** I should probably mention that this Chapter is going to get a bit more graphic. So if you're not the kind who likes dramatic depictions of violence then I suggest you ready yourself. Then again this is Blazblue so it's kind of expected. Still. This is your Public Service announcement after realizing a few hours after posting this chapter that I had failed to warn you guys before hand. Should have done that earlier. My bad.**

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 30

Previously On Canon Distortion

When Makoto Nanaya started her day, she expected the job of making sure her friend, Noel Vermillion was safely in Sector Seven security. Instead of that, she had to witness the Red Devil, Iron Tager, Defeated by her old boss. Her friend being knocked out by said boss and being sent to the NOL headquarters for some reason and finally her boss breaking her right arm just so she wouldn't be able to fight. Can this day get any worse?

And now, the continuation of Canon Distortion.

* * *

Pain… Pain was the only thing Makoto could only feel. It had been a few minutes since she had witnessed her friend get taken away from her by the NOL and her right arm being broken like a twig by her former boss who has a hate boner for her. The chains of Ouroboros coiled around her like a snake toying with their prey, the head of the chain sliding all over her body. Hazama himself glared at her with eyes filled with hatred as he would occasionally allow the chains to loosen for a bit before tightening further to further increase the amount of pain that would be inflicted on Makoto at that moment.

"**You know, the more quiet you remain the more I am going to make you hurt.**" Hazama said as he spun his finger on the chain. Makoto simply gave him a glaring look of hatred as Hazama simply grinned. He couldn't help but be amused as he looked at Makoto's broken arm and slowly stepped on it, further increasing the amount of pain she felt as Makoto simply winced and bit her lips to prevent herself from screaming which would mean giving her boss the satisfaction of letting him know she's in pain.

"**I have so many questions for you.**" Hazama mused as he walked over to Makoto's other hand and slowly coiled the chains around her fingers as Makoto made a fist to prevent the chains from fully exposing her hand, "**Firstly… Why is everyone so interested in you. I swear, I turn my back around for a little bit and suddenly you have become the talk of the town.**" Hazama mused as he began to slowly pry apart her fist with his slender fingers, slithering around her hold with such deftness.

"**Oh...I don't know. Maybe because nobody actually likes you asshole?**" Makoto taunted as Hazama simply sighed before pressing on her thumb with his hand, not breaking it but applying pressure to make her suddenly gasp for air to not scream. "**Now that's being rude. Sure I am not liked as much in the office but I do have my fair share of fans. There is… Was Lieutenant Noel Vermillion but you all just had to make her hate me like all the others.**" Hazama said which made Makoto laugh.

"**Geez, I never knew the slimy bastard cared about his reputation. Then again. I should have expected this coming from a snake like you.**" Makoto taunted as Hazama simply applied pressure to Makoto's hand, causing even more pain as Makoto immediately silenced herself to prevent the pain from being unbearable. "**And I never knew that rodents can spit such hateful words. Where did you learn your language hmmm? From the other humans who were right to hate you like the trash you are.**" Hazama insulted as he released his grip on her hand.

"**Or maybe what Relius said about you is the truth ****and you truly hate humans deep inside your cold beating heart.**" Hazama continued, prodding into her as if he was truly interrogating her. "**Oh I don't know. But I know that I can be cold to people who are assholes to my friends.**" Makoto said, glaring right at Hazama as he sighed and jerked the chain down to slam her down onto the ground. "**Looks like you might have grown a little since the last time I prodded your brain along with Relius… not that I like such things in the first place.**" Hazama said as Makoto began to wonder.

"**Tell me… Why didn't you just kill me if you knew I was going to be a pain in the ass. I noticed you seem to have time traveler powers and with those powers you must have seen what I have been doing way before I got to this point?**" Makoto questioned as Hazama simply tilted his head. "**Oh? And why shouldn't I just off you right now instead of answering your curiosity.**" Hazama questioned as Makoto chuckled before staring right at him.

"**Because you hate the fact that I know all of this information and yet for some reason you can't seem to get rid of me. Don't you snake?**" Makoto questioned as Hazama wanted to sigh but if he did do anymore he would simply be wasting his breath. "**Very well then. I don't mind telling you this since I will be killing you anyways.**" Hazama continued as he took off his hat before using it to slam Makoto's face to the ground.

The impact was enough to slightly concuss Makoto for a bit as he stepped on her head for a bit with the sole of his shoe. "**I have tried. Several times… I mean a lot of times. To simply off you and be done with it. You want to know what happens every time? The timeline resets and your stupid ass comes back.**" Hazama said before giving Makoto a swift kick to her ribs making her cough as she felt her rib nearly break on impact.

"**I could tell you the various ways I killed you… or I could just show you how I did so with Ouroboros. But you know. I'm afraid if I did that, you would just die from the shock and wet yourself like the untrained animal you are.**" Hazama said, his hatred for Makoto now in full view as Makoto simply gritted her teeth and tried to look right at Hazama to glare back. "**The short point is this. I have killed you in other timelines… but for whatever reason, you keep coming back.**" Hazama explained.

"**So I did the next best thing. I watched your ass the moment you entered the NOL. Hell I am the one who recommended you into intelligence in the first place. It's all so I can make sure you're in the palm of my hand. And can never do anything that would put anything I do at risk.**" Hazama continued, pressing his shoes onto Makoto's forehead to grind her head to the ground. "**But even then. You still find a way to be a thorn up my ass… talk about being so fucking troublesome**." Hazama commented as he released his foot off Makoto's head and had Ouroboros hang her in the air once more.

"**So what am I going to do with you? If I kill you, the timeline simply resets and undoes your death. If I keep you alive, you're just going to keep on being a nuisance and thorn on my side.**" Hazama mused as Makoto couldn't help but moan in pain as she did not like this. "**I could try brainwashing you to my side. It would be so good to see your friends struggle to even lift their weapons against you. But Relius might oppose that too the killjoy.**" Hazama thought as Makoto looked at Hazama with simple disgust in her eyes.

* * *

Makoto: **Great… It's either my shitty boss or his shitty friend. God just kill me already**

Hazama: **You know what… I have a better idea. Tell me, what brings you here to Kagutsuchi in the first place?**

Makoto:** Isn't it obvious. it's to get Noel away from your grummy hands and I fucked up my job**

Hazama: **Well that much is obvious but not what I am talking about rodent.**

Makoto: **Then what are you trying to say huh?**

* * *

"**I am talking about...THIS!**" Hazama suddenly commanded Ouroboros to lunge, as Makoto felt the snake head suddenly enter her head through her forehead as the pain was simply excruciating. She screamed in agony as she felt something burrow deep into her mind almost similar to the way Relius Clover had done to her but it was much more forceful. The head continued to dig as all she could do was simply scream in agony as Hazama happily took in the sight of what he was seeing.

But he focused, making sure to not get lost in his delight in Makoto's suffering as Makoto soon felt her memories of Sora get dragged out of her mind for Hazama to see as her mind began to black out a few times. Hazama had to yank on the chain to get Makoto back to reality as it was clear to her what he wanted to know. "**I want to know how someone like you was able to retain partial memories of a man who everyone else had forgotten?**" Hazama demanded as Makoto took a couple of deep heavy breathes, trying to steady her mind as she looked at Hazama.

"**W-Well How am I supposed to know. I just did for the longest time. Then you assholes came into my mind and started digging it up for your own...**" before Makoto could finish her sentence, Hazama violently rocked the chain, inflicting damage to her mind as Makoto screamed even more. The pain her body felt nothing like how the pain her mind was feeling at that moment. "**Fine. Another question then, Why is Relius even interested in your ass in the first place.**" Hazama questioned as Makoto couldn't help but scoff a bit.

"**Well how I am supposed to know, I thought you two were the best of friends huh?**" Makoto questioned as Hazama sighed and spun his knife around before stabbing it right into her broken arm, making her scream before he wrapped the chains around the handle of the balisong knife and had it drive deeper into her arm like an ice pick would on a rock wall. Makoto wanted to scream bloody murder but she bit heavily into her lips instead, causing blood to drip out of them as Hazama knew he was wasting his time trying to question her as the more he dug into her mind, the more he learned.

"**Of course you wouldn't know… God dammit this whole timeline is fucked up. I hate how everyone is expressing their interests in a worthless nobody like you! God even your so called boyfriend is a worthless nothing!**" Hazama screamed as hatred and anger was simply erupting out of him as he was simply hating his current situation. He wanted things to go back to normal already so that his plans can go back to normal but he knew that this was not to be the case regardless of what happens.

Makoto meanwhile had heard something that piqued her interest as Hazama had called Sora a nobody. "**Are you trying to tell me you know what is going on with Sora?!**" Makoto screamed, her lips bleeding as this made Hazama realize that the rabbit had not told her the truth about Sora Minakaze. He did not care about what the gods had in mind, all that he cared about was the fact that he was going to inflict the sweetest despair possible on the person who had been a thorn on his side.

"**Oh? Do you really want to know hmmm?**" Hazama said, like the snake that offered the fruit of knowledge to Eve as Makoto gulped. She knew that Hazama's words were lies and deceit. Everything he could say to her could simply be another lie that he made up. "**Oh? Don't trust me now? Maybe this can help you change your mind.**" The other part of the chain of Ouroboros then floated close to Hazama, inserting itself right into his own head.

It was in that exact moment Makoto could feel a surge of different emotions erupt into her mind. Various negative emotions soon came washing into her mind as Makoto struggled to even make a noise at that point, feeling her mind was being invaded by something that was not even hers. '_**It's...It's like before...with Relius...Stop...**_' Makoto thought as Hazama couldn't help but happily grin from that. "**My my. Such delicious thoughts. Did no one ever tell you about Ouroboros's true capabilit****ies****?**" Hazama questioned as Makoto looked at him, shocked that he was able to read her mind with such ease.

She knew very well about the power of the Nox Nyctoreses, after all, being designed to fight against Black Beasts is a clue to how strong they are. However no book will ever tell you the capabilities of these weapons. Their strengths are often left to the imagination to the reader with Makoto knowing very well about Yukianesa and Bolverk. "**I don't blame you thought… the crafty sage Nine made sure all information about the Nox Nyctoreses were destroyed completely. Hell, consider yourself lucky to have even seen the Lost Nox Nyctores itself.**"

The lost Nox Nyctores? What was he talking about? Could he be talking about Hunter's weapon Draco? In fact why is Draco considered a lost Nox Nyctores? Wouldn't a weapon this famous be a part of the pantheon of other well known Nox Nyctoreses? "**Oh? You didn't know? Nine made that as a way to severely weaken the Black Beast enough for the others to shine. It was also the first Nox Nyctores she sealed because of how strong it was.**" Hazama explained as Makoto could feel the glee he had explaining everything, telling her that he was telling her the truth.

"**Why….Why are you doing this? You could be bullshitting me right now. Why tell me all of this as the truth?**" Makoto questioned as Hazama simply grinned before placing his hat on his head. "**Because my dear rodent of a friend. You are different. You are very used to lies and expect to lie. I can tell… the truth scares you. Hell with your experience with Relius I know that is true.**" Hazama explained as Makoto shivered. The way she saw the man shift his personality with such ease and how easy he was able to flip between anger and quiet cruelty.

Whether it was this or the fight before, Makoto could feel a sense of exhaustion start swimming into her. "**But we are getting ahead of ourselves now. The reason why I even bothered to link my mind with yours is to show you the truth. The truth about your so called 'Boyfriend' Sora Minakaze.**" Hazama said, air quoting with his fingers as he could feel the reluctance of Makoto Nanaya. The reluctance to know the truth about her boyfriend for fear of what that truth may really be.

"**Firstly…**** Why do you think the world erased your memory of Sora Minakaze in the first place.**" Hazama mused as he began to slink his hand between her breasts to grab the necklace that she wore and looked at it with glee. "**Do you think the world's out to get him? How he must have done something to piss it off.**" Hazama continued as he attempted to try and remove it only to be surprised when Makoto's left hand managed to free itself just to grab the necklace.

"**Don't you fucking dare bastard.**" Makoto said as her thoughts did not reflect her words as she felt fearful, terrified that Hazama was trying to take away her longest connection with Sora this whole time she forgot as Hazama decided to relent, allowing him to feel the relief Makoto felt when he relented as that relief will soon turn to dread when he speaks the truth. "**Of course… you wouldn't have that answer in the first place. The gods aren't so kind as to tell you that information for free.**" Hazama said as Makoto simply glared at him.

"**The gods wish for the world to stay ignorant because they know what the reaction of the people will be if they found out the truth. Can you imagine if half of the truths of this world. The fact that we are just a part of an endless stream of timelines were made public to everyone? Everyone would lose their shit. Hell even you know as much as you do now should feel the same. After all, you could have lost yourself and not believed a single damn thing.**"

The words Hazama spoke, Makoto wanted to deny so badly but she knew they were of the truth. There was no reason for him to lie? What would he have gained from doing so? Even the link she had with him right now was telling the truth as she could feel Ouroboros burrow deeper to her subconscious. "**The hell exactly… are you trying to get here.**" Makoto questioned as she knew that Hazama was simply beating around the bush and that he could have just told her the answer already as Hazama simply gave her an evil grin and leaned in closer for her to hear.

"**Well it's simple. That man you love? Sora Minakaze. He's been deemed a sacrifice by the god of this world to act as the catalyst to forcibly change an event.**" Hazama explained as Makoto's eyes widened at that. Death? What does he mean that Sora was going to die? "**You see… there's so many things you can do with Phenomena Intervention. You can alter events to go the way you want or even change the destiny of a person completely. That's why we have so many timelines in the first place. You experienced it yourself, a timeline where Noel Vermillion did not exist.****Did you not?**" Hazama questioned as Makoto couldn't help but begin to sweat.

The words he spoke, the truths he gave her, they were all true. She wanted to scream out that he was simply making shit up as a way to try and scare her but the link she had with his sick twisted mind told her that he was not lying… and he was enjoying telling her all of this with the sickest happiness a person could have as she shook her head, denying the truth placed in front of her. "**I don't understand… Why… WHY HIM!?**" Makoto demanded as Hazama simply grinned.

'**I could tell you the truth. After all, seeing such despair in front of me has never tasted so delicious.**' Hazama thought as Makoto could feel his thoughts rush into her mind, polluting it as she struggled to keep her consciousness her own as Hazama decided to do so. "**It's simply because the world deems he's not necessary to keep the world going. He's an expendable piece that they can use and thus they will use him as such. An error who has no place or need in any timeline.**" Hazama explained.

The words he spoke, they were mirroring the same words that Rachel had told her all the way back in Ibukido. How Sora was a mistake in the world and she said had the potential to rip apart reality itself for some reason. "**And I see the rabbit has told you something similar… good. Because that means you know that my information is the same as hers.**" Hazama said, grinning with glee as Makoto herself felt sick to her stomach. Listening to all of this information was something she struggled to stomach as Hazama looked at her in the eyes.

"**And there's nothing… absolutely nothing. Either you or him can do to stop it. Once the god does what it needs to do, he's gonna go poof. Just. Like...that.**" Hazama mockingly said, holding back a laugh as Makoto wanted to scream insults at his face, her mind barraging him with even more as at that point, Hazama ended his connection with Makoto, pulling the chain of Ouroboros linked into his head off as he grinned.

"**Now the question is… what to do with you right now.**" Hazama mused as he began to think of the several ways he could torture his favourite lieutenant right now. He could just fuck with her mind and render her a vegetable but where's the fun in that. There's also the idea of handing her back to Relius and letting him handle her from there but of course, there is only one way… the true Hazama and Yuuki Terumi way. And it's the way of most pain.

"**You know...for so long. You have just been… the greatest thorn by my side.**" Hazama said as he pulled Makoto closer, stopping her where his balisong knife had remained lodged. "**But that changes today… For you see… You're going to be very useful to me.**" Hazama said, pulling out his knife in a painful manner as he began to slither his hand all over her right arm. "**Still...to wear such lewd clothing… I must punish you like the puritan I am.**" Hazama joked as he stabbed his knife into her right shoulder.

At this point, Makoto was simply done trying to hold it in and simply released a blood curling yell as Hazama simply smiled. "**You see… I just need something… something to push dear Lieutenant Noel Vermillion over her breaking point.**" Hazama explained as a simple twist was enough to painfully dislocate Makoto's right arm completely, causing even more yelling as Ouroboros began to assault her mind, amplifying the pain she felt as it's chains wrapped around her like a vise, causing her bones to slowly crunch.

"**And since she's such good friends with you… what would be a better way of pissing her off and sending her to the brink of despair by seeing her friend dead.**" Hazama explained as Makoto's eyes widened both in pain and what he had just said. She wanted to say something witty, something that would help make the shitty situation she was in sound less shitty but there was simply nothing she could do but continue to feel the pain and agony course through her veins.

"**So here's what's going to happen. I am going to take this arm of yours, dispose you like the trash you are and make sure your friend does her job of being the godslayer right. And you just have to do your final job and make sure you die correctly this time….PERMANENTLY.**" and with those words, he began to twist and carve out Makoto's right arm as slowly and as painfully as possible. The pain he was inflicting was simply inhumane as Makoto felt every single inch of the blade sever right into her. Blood began to pour out of her quickly as she felt like a pig being drained in a slaughterhouse.

She screamed as hard as she could, as if it was her body's response to try and numb the pain. The chains did not make it any easier as Hazama continued to slowly hack off her arm as Makoto felt his knife cut into veins and blood began to pour out even more. Her mind began to black out several times as she struggled to even keep her eyes open at this point as the pain had simply become unbearable at this point.

Hazama could see it. She was at death's door at this point. He could just cut her arm off and leave it there. But where's the fun… the theatrics of that? No.. this bitch made him suffer for several timelines, been a thorn on his ass at several steps of the way and the thought of her just being let go with a simple arm slice and toss down an abyss simply made him feel unsatisfied. He wanted pain, he wanted suffering. He just wanted to make Makoto feel like shit.

"**In any case… You have done your duty well Lieutenant Nanaya.**" Hazama said as Ouroboros released itself from her mind, freeing her mind from the torture it gave as the chains released her from their grasp for a bit before wrapping itself around her nearly severed and useless right arm. "**Now…**** here's your reward for your dutiful...and diligent service!**" Hazama shouted as with a command, Ouroboros heavily jerked Makoto in the air.

The sudden force and tension immediately ripping off what remained of Makoto's arm off her body as Makoto screamed bloody murder, the stump where her right arm was spurting out blood like crazy. The pain. The pain was simply something she couldn't explain at this point as Makoto's mind began to black out from the pain. Hazama had Ouroboros wrap around Makoto's ankle as he grabbed her severed arm and stared at it with nostalgic delight. "**Now that...was very satisfying.**" Hazama said, reminded of the day he witnessed a little white haired boy get his own arm severed by his little brother as he kept the severed arm in his jacket.

Makoto meanwhile simply felt her consciousness fade in and out. The blood rushing out of her stump of her arm making her mind go blank. At this point she had simply lost the strength to even scream as she weakly moaned in pain. "**Oh? Looks like that was too much for you huh. Did you enjoy your reward too much now?**" Hazama teased as Makoto weakly whimpered in pain as the chain around her ankle tightened, bruising it.

"**In any case. Why don't you take a break now?**" Hazama said to Makoto but to her, she was simply hearing nothing. In fact, she didn't even notice Hazama at this point, death bringing her closer and closer to death as her consciousness would not allow her to focus on what was going to happen next to her. All she knew was that she was dying. Her mind was going blank and that she was going to die here of all places…

* * *

**As her mind struggled to stay awake.**

* * *

**MAKOTO POV**

* * *

_Aaa….Aahhh…_

_The Pain… it's too much_

_Barely able… to make consistent thoughts right now…_

_Too much energy...to do so_

…_.Chain...Ankle wrapped around something_

_Dangling right now… must mean I am going to be disposed of soon. _

_When...Will he drop me?_

_Blood dripping...too much… mind barely able to focus on anything right now…_

_Chain tightening harder on ankle._

_Might be broken now. Something snapped_

_I can't feel my body right now…_

_Too much adrenaline rushing into me right now._

_I am going to die_

_I am dying_

_...What is happening right now_

_Opening my eyes...so painful_

_All I can see...is black and red_

_Blood from lips_

_Dripping down my eyes_

_Blood flowing from my body to my head._

_...Cannot die yet_

_Need….Need to see_

_Sora…_

_Aaa…_

_I'm falling…_

_I'm...really falling._

_I can't stop falling_

_I can't even...use ars magus to stop myself_

_I'm...really going to…._

* * *

_Huh?_

_Not falling anymore?_

_What happened?_

_Someone...saved me?_

_But...who?_

…_.hand being held…_

_Need...to see_

_Who saved me_

_Ahhh…_

_They...are so far away_

_I can't see them very well._

"**Hold On…..Save you...**"

_Huh? Save_

_They...are trying to save me?_

_Need...to get a better look?_

_Mind...becoming a bit more clear_

_...Maybe...death is bringing clarity _

_Eyes...becoming a bit more clear_

_Can… see a figure…_

_Man...with white hair...blond tips…_

_holding my hand...with his own…_

"**Hang...There….Pull...Up...**"

_He's...trying to save me_

_Ahhh… the blood...my hand_

_It's slipping… They are struggling to pull me up._

_I can't grip their hand_

_no strength anymore…_

_eyes...becoming heavy again…_

_Must...look closer_

_At person saving me.._

_Must...keep focus…_

_Eyes...becoming clear again…_

_Can...finally see face again…_

…_..Aaaa_

_Is that you Sora?_

"**Don't...die like...**"

_I… I'm sorry…_

_Can't… really see you_

_The darkness...it's becoming...too blinding._

_Lips...can barely speak…_

_I...I need you to hear me…_

_Cannot...let you die...too_

"_**Please...let...me go...**_"

_Hand becoming tighter… Sora...not letting go…_

"**Don't...Say stuff like that! I...Save you!**"

_Ahhh… always stubborn… always trying...to protect me…_

_I...love...and hate that...sometimes…._

_Feeling...sudden shift...in weight._

_Sora...losing grip...losing strength_

_Can't hang on...or he dies too_

_...I don't want him to die… He needs to live…_

"_**I'm...I'm sorry...for being this weak… **__**I wished...I can...stand beside you...as an equal.**_"

_Must...make sure...Sora...doesn't die…_

_He's crying… Sora's crying so much… I can't see very well… hearing hurts… must...free myself_

_Must...Make sure...Sora's alright…_

_Sudden shift in weight again… Sora barely hanging onto me now…_

_Can...use blood...to wriggle free…_

"_**Sorry...for doing this… I love you...**_"

_finally freed myself_

_Falling again_

_The wind blowing on my back…_

_mind...losing consciousness_

_Mommy...Daddy...Brothers...Sisters…_

_Noel...Tsuabki...Hunty...Mai.. Cajun_

_...Sora…_

…_.I'm...Sorry_

* * *

_**But...I'm...going to sleep...now….**_

* * *

Sora and Ragna were running. Running to make it to the meeting spot that Sora was told by Makoto to meet her and Noel at. "**Are we there yet kid?**" Ragna questioned as Sora scratched his head. He had decided that they needed to take a bit more of an indirect route, running through the alleyways, dodging NOL troops patrolling around the area. "**Almost I think. We should be approaching the stairs right now.**" Sora said as at this point. Sora stopped running which prompted Ragna to do the same.

"**Well finally. I was getting worried you were taking me for a wild goose chase there.**" Ragna said as Sora couldn't help but look at Ragna with a look in his eyes. "**You still think I am going to betray you? Jeez you have trust issues but that's to be expected from the world's most wanted man.**" Sora commented as Ragna scratched his head. "**Well you can bite me. I am simply trying to keep my bases covered.**" Ragna commented as Sora chuckled a little bit.

"**Well it's just for a few more minutes now. Sorry to be wasting your time like this.**" Sora apologised as he could see Ragna was more than eager to be heading towards the NOL headquarters right now to do his thing. "**Whatever kid. The sooner we get there the better it will be.**" Ragna said as Sora simply nodded his head. "**Yeah, I just hope that we aren't...**" before Sora could finish his sentence, he noticed Ragna's expression change a bit as he looked at the direction that Ragna was looking at.

"**The hell's that.**" Ragna simply commented as the two noticed something falling from the sky. As the object came closer, Sora's eyes immediately widened in horror as Ragna noticed him suddenly off on his own "**Hey kid! What are you.**" Before Ragna could understand what was happening next, He sees Sora toss his knife into the air and began to spontaneously teleport in the air in an erratic manner. Ragna still not used to what he was seeing as Sora's focus at that point was the figure in front of him.

Pulling out the Rev Blade, he quickly transformed it into it's arm form to catch the thing...rather...person that was falling at that moment. His arms gently caressed the bloody visage of Makoto Nanaya as he curled himself, Makoto tightly held in his hand as he crashed back first into a nearby trash can, breaking his fall and causing piles upon piles of garbage to explode in the process. Sora's adrenaline at that point was simply rushing

His eyes quickly scanned the crumbled figure of Makoto that he held his arms. Her body felt slightly cold as he was quick to check a pulse, breathing a sigh of relief to feel a faint and weak pulse before his eyes caught a glimpse of something that terrified him. The fact that her whole right arm was missing as his eyes immediately lit up with action as he got off the pile of trash and lied her on the ground as Ragna ran and caught up to the two.

"**What the hell!?**" Ragna simply shouted as confusion struck him like how lightning strikes a tree. Sora however was not having any of it, quickly pulling out emergency first aid supplies he normally keeps around him for himself to begin treating Makoto. "**If you know any Healing Ars Magus right now, get your ass over here and help me seal up the wound!**" Sora commanded as he swiftly pulled out a few bandages and fire patches to begin dressing and treating Makoto's wounds. Ragna himself did not bother questioning the sight in front of him and immediately assisted Sora with the treatment as there was simply one thing in their minds.

* * *

**They needed to treat her to save her now otherwise she was going to die.**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING!? Well I am doing fine. I just hope that this chapter did not depress any of you guys. As much as it sucks to see our favourite squirrel girl literally be at death's door, we still have to remember that this is a work of fiction and that we must not try to take things too seriously. Regardless. I understand what I may have done to Makoto this chapter can be seen as heartless and well I just want to apologize if you are offended by how Makoto is treated this chapter. But trust that I know what I am writing and let's just say that pain is the first step towards happiness.**

**SO WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!? IS MAKOTO GOING TO MAKE IT!? IF SHE DID WILL BE ABLE TO RECOVER FROM THE LOSS OF HER ARM!? WHAT ABOUT SORA!? HOW WILL HE REACT TO THE SIGHT OF HIS GIRLFRIEND LOSING HER ARM AND FALLING FROM THE SKY!? AND FINALLY WHAT IS RAGNA THE BLOODEDGE'S OPINION ABOUT THE SHITTY SITUATION IN FRONT OF THEM!? WELL… all these and more will be answered in the next chapter.**


	32. Canon 31: A Long Road Ahead

(A new canon has arrived and now that the series of events have unfolded in front of us. We shall now see where the next path lies.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 31

The first thing Noel Vermillion felt when she woke up was a sharp pain in her gut. The next thing afterwards was the cold cold ground her face was lying on. Her senses were slowly coming back to her as the pain she felt on her gut was simply unbearable. As soon as a little of her senses came back, she immediately realized that something was wrong as she immediately felt her whole body's senses kick in and tell her to wake up at that moment.

'**Makoto!?**' Noel's mind first thought, the last person she saw was Makoto Nanaya as she was beaten and bruised on the floor. '**Where's Makoto!?**' Noel thought as she tried to stand up, wincing in pain as she realized she was standing in a different environment as it was clearly not the meeting spot that Makoto had arranged Sector Seven to pick them up from. It looked more like the top of another building as she shook her head, trying to get a bearing of her surroundings.

"**Oh My. Lieutenant Vermillion. You shouldn't be waking up so quickly.**" A voice mockingly said as Noel tried to focus to see the person who said that. "**Who...Who goes there!**" Noel shouted, holding her belly a bit before finally focusing her gaze on what was in front of her. Her confusion suddenly turned into anger as the green haired man known as Hazama was simply looking at her at that moment. "**But then again, you did have a rough night's sleep so maybe you should be sleeping some more.**" Hazama said, smiling as Noel quickly made manifest in her hands Bolverk once more out of instinct.

"**WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MAKOTO!?**" Noel questioned, raising her voice as her hands tightly clenched the nox nyctoreses as her eyes were simply glaring right at the man as Hazama simply raised his hands in the air. "**Hey hey now, there's no need to become so aggressive on me now. We don't need violence in these parts now.**" Hazama cautioned as Noel did not relent her aim towards her former colleague as she did not trust his words at this point.

"**TELL ME... WHERE IS MAKOTO!**" Noel demanded as Hazama simply shook his head. "**I am afraid that she kicked the bucket I am afraid.**" Hazama said, speaking in a sad tone as Noel's eyes flared up at that. Makoto was dead? No, that couldn't be. "**You're lying! You're LYING!**" Noel shouted, denying the words of the man in front of her as she did not want to believe that her friend was really dead. That she really had died.

"**Why should I even lie? I gain nothing from doing so.**" Hazama asked as Noel gritted her teeth. "**BECAUSE YOU JUST WANT TO GET INTO MY HEAD! MAKE ME DOUBT MYSELF! MAKOTO'S NOT THAT WEAK TO JUST DIE LIKE THAT!**" Noel shouted, having great faith in her friend as she wanted to believe, to trust that her friend was still alive and that Hazama simply had her kept somewhere. Maybe a prison or an airship.

Hazama couldn't help but sigh at that. As much as he could appreciate the fact that Lieutenant Noel Vermillion had so much trust in her friend. He knew the truth much better then she did and was purposely trying to rile her up enough, build her rage before he pulled out his trump card. "**Oh trust me. She was way weaker than she looks. Her muscles are nothing but fat at the end of the day.**" Hazama said as he could feel Noel's anger seeping out of her.

"**I REFUSE TO BELIEVE YOU!**" Noel shouted as Hazama couldn't help but feel a little bad for doing what he was going to do next. Key word being a little as he reached into his coat. "**If you don't want to believe me, fine. Why don't I show you my proof then.**" Hazama said as he calmly with a sly grin pulled out the severed arm of Makoto Nanaya for Noel to see as Noel's eyes widened greatly, recognizing it as Makoto's arm due to the glove that it wore as Noel felt her blood freeze for a bit.

"**See? Don't believe me? Why don't you give it a feel.**" Hazama said and tossed the arm towards Noel's direction, the arm sliding across the ground as Noel shakily stared at it. She slowly leaned in to look at the arm as she placed one of the Bolverks to the ground and slowly picked it up from the ground. The cold skin feeling she felt on her hand confirmed that the arm was recently severed as she did not want to believe it. In fact she wanted to believe that the arm Hazama had tossed to her was simply a lie.

But the more she felt around it, the more she held onto it, the more Hazama's supposed lie was actually the truth. Noel wanted to scream so badly at that moment, scream in horror that she was holding potentially and most likely her deceased friend's severed arm and that Hazama had killed her and dumped her somewhere nobody would be able to find her. "**She died as she had lived. A rodent.**" Hazama simply mused as Noel's hands began to shake angrily hearing that as her eyes flared up in anger.

"**HAZAMA!**" Noel screamed as Bolverk began to create waves of energy. The seithr around the area began to shape itself and suck itself right into the white pair of guns as Hazama simply grinned. "**Oh what's the matter? Going to get angry at me?**" Hazama taunted as Noel's teeth gritted hearing that. Her anger was flaring at that point as she wanted to simply kill Hazama at that point. A bloodlust began to grow within her, a hatred for this person right in front of her that she had never felt inside of her.

'**I'm going to kill you...KILL YOU.**' Noel thought as dark thoughts began to swim deep within her mind. A hatred she had never felt before was starting to grow. Her friends being taken away from her, her love possibly gone and she may never see again, and she had nowhere to vent her anger... except for the person who was responsible for possibly staging her friends death as she gritted her teeth and tightened her grip on Bolverk.

"**Yeah right? As if someone as soft as you can really get mad now.**" Hazama taunted as Noel angrily fired a shot from Bolverk, blasting a beam of energy from the barrel as tears began to drip out of her eyes. "**HAZAMA...HAZAMA!**" Noel screamed as she began to angrily fire her shots at the green haired man, accuracy be dammed as she was not aiming her shots, blind anger consuming her focus as Hazama barely had to try and dodge out of the way.

"**Oh come on now? Is that all you got? Is this all your rage can muster up?! I cannot help but feel insulted!**" Hazama said as Noel could no longer take the abuse of words she was hearing at this point. "**HAZAMA! I AM GOING TO KILL YOU!**" Noel screamed as she pointed the barrel of Bolverk, her hatred fully seething out of her face as bloodlust leaked from her, the seithr in the air responding to her anger by swirling behind her like a raging tempest.

"**KILL!**" In that one moment, where Noel's emotions had gathered up, been played with, her hopes, shattered to something that was beyond recognition and finally her dreams for the future laid ruined in her eyes. Noel pulled the trigger as the barrel of Bolverk grew bright red at that moment before immediately shattering, blasting the entire Nox Nyctores apart from her hand, leaving just the pistol grips of the once full gun as Noel felt her mind go blank at that moment.

'**In that case...destroy the world...destroy it and everything within it**.' a thought flashed as she instinctively pointed the other remaining barrel of Bolverk right at Hazama. The dark thoughts in her mind swimming effortlessly and melding with her current train of thought. '**Kill everything. Start by killing everything in this world. Let this world know your anger. Your rage. Your sorrow. Everything!**' The voice spoke as Noel released out a bloodcurdling yell and attempted to fire another blast right at Hazama.

In the apex of her emotions. Her feelings boiling in an uncontrollable fury. Her eyes blind to the anger she was displaying and the sense of innocence she had within her vanished as the other half of Bolverk destroyed itself the moment she pulled the trigger. Hazama couldn't help but grin madly as a cocoon began to manifest itself behind her. "**Yes...That's right. Let it consume you. Let your hatred consume you and let you become the god slayer you are destined to become.**"

Noel couldn't even utter a word at that point as the cocoon slowly extended out energy tendrils to pull her in as her body assumed a fetal position. Allowing the white wings of the cocoon to surround her as Meifang walked in on that moment to see the giant ball floating in the air. "**So this is what killing my target is worth? A giant ball in the air?**" Meifang questioned as Hazama chuckled hearing that as he pulled down on his hat to make sure it remained on his head.

"**Of course not. I needed sufficient emotional backlash from Miss Vermillion to ensure she would be reforged into her Murakumo self, thus becoming the god slayer she is meant to be instead of that timid girl she currently is.**" Hazama explained as Meifang scoffed and walked over to Makoto's severed arm, picking it up. "**And you had to sever the arm of my goal for what reason?**" Meifang questioned as Hazama simply shrugged, taking the severed arm from Meifang's clutches.

"**I could have brought her the rodent's head and it would have had the same result. I just wanted to see Miss Vermillion agonize over the fact that her friend might actually be dead and that there's nothing she can do about it.**" Hazama answered as Meifang scratched her head. She couldn't believe what she was hearing from the head of intelligence himself and how casual he was being. "**Look. We may be working together for the same goal but that doesn't mean I have to like you. Don't do anything stupid to make me hate you even more.**" Meifang explained as Hazama raised his eyebrow.

"**Oh? But don't you already hate me?**" Hazama mockingly questioned as Meifang stared at him in the eyes. "**I had my sights on that girl. I was going to ask for Relius's help in making her material for a project of mine. But now she's dead my own plans are fucked. So maybe next time you do something as stupid as that, consult your friends first why don't you.**" Meifang said, her voice raised as Hazama simply shook his head in disbelief.

"**Jeez. All I did was simply kill a bitch for standing in my way and everyone's already hating me even more than they did before. Not that I mind but still talk about having a hate magnet strapped onto me.**" Hazama mildly complained as Meifang scratched her head. "**Fuck with my plans again. Or not let me know what you're going to do. And I swear I am going to make sure you're fucked with Snake. After all, the Zero Division does have their methods." Meifang warned as Hazama opened his eyes, glaring right at her.**

"**Is that a threat directed right at me Miss LapisLazuli?**" Hazama questioned as Meifang made sure to get up his face and stare him right at the eyes. "**No. It's a disciplinary warning for you. You may be part of intelligence but don't think your actions are not going unnoticed by the higher ups. Especially those in the Zero Squadron. I am simply warning you as beneficial friends to not do anything that will compromise our goal at the end.**" Meifang warned as Hazama couldn't help but laugh a bit.

"**Of course. Thank you for letting me know about that. I promise you that I will make sure to keep that in mind the next time I conduct my business.**" Hazama said as Meifang simply turned around. "**I'm going to keep the base clear of anybody thinking of interfering. You better make sure you don't mess this up for all of us.**" Meifang warned as she soon left Hazama on his own as his eyes were simply focused on the giant cocoon once more, admiring his work as he held the severed arm of Makoto Nanaya with a eerie like glee.

* * *

"**I better make sure I get this preserved so I can hang it on my wall. Hehehehe**"

* * *

As Hazama continued on with his plans. Ragna was keeping watch as Sora continued to cradle Makoto in his arms tenderly. They had managed to stabilize Makoto at this point but she was breathing weakly. At this point, she should consider herself lucky to have survived being amputated and then tossed of the height of a high rise building to her death. Despite this however, it doesn't change the fact that she was currently unconscious and her heartbeat was faint.

Sora himself was quiet, rubbing his hand on the amputated closed wound of Makoto's missing arm. So many different thoughts were running through his mind at that point from who could have done this to her? What the hell had happened with Noel and is Makoto going to be alright from this as with such a traumatic event like this, Sora would be surprised to know that she wouldn't have PTSD at this point.

"**Is she doing alright right now?**" Ragna questioned as Sora looked at him with a bit of surprise in his eyes. "**The way you're caring for her tells me that she's alright for the time being but I don't want to come off as just guessing it.**" Ragna continued as Sora silently nodded his head. "**She's stable for now... but her pulse is weak and she's not going to be waking up anytime soon.**" Sora explained as Ragna nodded his head at that, deciding to give Sora some more space by keeping his eye out for NOL troops.

As he did so, Sora continued to look at Makoto, stroking her hair gently as he felt a deep sadness in his heart. It was his choice that they had split up, it was his idea that they meet up later after he had met up with Rachel. Now that she had ended up like this and he knew it was all because of him, Sora couldn't help but want to punch himself in the face as he placed his face on her bosom to feel her body's gentle warmth, being careful to not apply too much pressure in the process.

"**I'm sorry... I'm so sorry Makoto...**" Sora apologized, knowing very well that she was not going to be able to hear what he was saying but still felt the urge to say so. It was his plan that caused all of this to happen to her, all of the pain to be inflicted onto her way as he bit his lips tightly, regret growing on his face as he did not know what he should feel at this moment. Regret for his choices, anger that his choices caused this to happen or sadness for the pain he had inflicted on his loved one.

All of these choices had one simple feeling. His actions caused the most amount of pain and now he was dealing with the aftermath as he continued to rub the stump of her arm. Even if she receives a mechanical arm to replace what was lost, it will never change the fact that she has lost a part of herself for the rest of her life and she can never return to a normal way of life that two normal hands can give over a mechanical one.

Even she recovers and she doesn't mind not having a mechanical arm, the fact that her body was now permanently scarred the way it was and to have a constant reminder of his greatest failure ingrained onto the person he loves and their body is traumatizing to any boyfriend, girlfriend, husband or wife. And Sora was not exempt from this as while he was used to having pain be reflected on his body, for the first time in his life, he was now experiencing the other side of that pain.

He's normally used to the people he loves being dead... yet this seems even more painful than that. At least with the people he loves dying in front of his eyes, they are dead. Their deaths are just as equally painful as those who are alive but they aren't suffering any longer than they need to. Death... in a strange way in Sora's mind, is much more preferential to living. Does this mean that he wishes that Makoto had died? Of course not. it's just that the pain and grief he felt deep inside him was just eating away at his conscious.

"**Hey man. We got to talk about what we are going to do now.**" Ragna said, snapping Sora out of his funk as he slowly raised his head off Makoto's bosom, Ragna noticing how Sora had been unconsciously crying as he simply nodded before Ragna leaned his back on the wall. "**The way I see things right now. She's in no condition to be moved around right now.**" Ragna said as Sora nodded his head, agreeing with what Ragna had said.

"**The way I see it, we have to leave her somewhere to make sure that she's being well taken care off right now.**" Ragna said as Sora nodded his head at that suggestion. "**I do have a friend who can take care of her for us... Who am I kidding, you should probably stay with her right now.**" Ragna said as Sora's eyes widened at that. He wanted to say something but took a deep breath and patiently held back as Ragna realized he wanted to hear Ragna's rationalization and tell him more.

"**The way I see things... you're currently going to be a liability with your emotions. I get the whole emotions making you stronger thing but if you don't get a grip on it, it's just as good as being a damn detriment to us.**" Ragna explained as Sora closed his eyes, noting what Ragna said as his mind began to think about the suggestion that Ragna had just suggested to him, weighing in on the option that Ragna had just proposed to him. Ragna knew he had to give the man some time to think despite their need to rush to the NOL base.

As Ragna gave Sora his space, Sora began to weigh his options. He could abandon his original plan of heading straight to the NOL headquarters and instead go with Ragna to this person who could take care of her. There he could spend the necessary time to take care of her until she was in a better condition that he would be able to go to the NOL base by then. But if he did that, he knows he would be squandering the best chance he got at finding the truth.

Besides that, there's also the question of Noel. She was supposed to be with Makoto to bring her to Sector Seven. So by going that train of logic and judging from the way the NOL were after both her and Makoto the night before that simply meant that the NOL has something in plan for Noel and that they were going to do something to her. If that was the case, wouldn't Makoto would want to head straight to the NOL headquarters to try and rescue her from the clutches from the NOL?

"**Makoto...**" Sora mumbled as his mind continued to think about possible options he should be considering. Does he really want to endanger Makoto's life even more than it is currently? Is the truth really worth the possibility of losing Makoto? If that was the case, he should really consider taking Ragna's offer and stay with Makoto to take care of her. As much as that sounds like the rational... the correct choice. It did not sit well with him.

Would he be alright letting go of the truth like this just because his loved one was injured the way she is? Would Makoto really be alright with him abandoning everything just to take care of her? Wouldn't that be equally as damaging to her mental psyche to know that she was the one responsible for making Sora to lose his truth. Sure she would be safe but would she really be able to live with that fact in her mind? He knows he's not Makoto and he's not able to think about what she's exactly saying but he also knew that this was his decision to make.

"**Tell me... where's your friend exactly?**" Sora questioned, making Ragna raise his head. "**She works in a clinic at the oriental district of Kagutsuchi. If we head there now, we will be able to get that girl of yours the treatment she needs.**" Ragna explained as Sora closed his eyes and gently rubbed his hand on Makoto's stump once more. The oriental district. That would mean making his way to the NOL headquarters after dropping Makoto off would be near impossible if the NOL beefed up their security.

"**If that's alright with you. I'll give you the location of her place and I will be on my way.**" Ragna said as Sora quietly closed his eyes before nodding his head. Ragna took a deep breath as he got ready to give Sora the location of Litchi's clinic for him to head to as he slowly lifted Makoto into a bridal style carry. "**Come on Ragna, we got to get moving.**" Sora said as Ragna nodded. "**I know. Just give me a bit to give you the location first.**" Ragna said

"**Not for the clinic. We are heading straight for the NOL headquarters right now**." Sora said, alarming Ragna as he quickly walked up to Sora surprised to hear his decision. "**Are you serious right now?! You are going to go to the NOL headquarters with her injured like that!**" Ragna said as Sora simply nodded his head. He knew that Ragna knew that his decision sounded stupid. Irrational and reckless.

"W**e can just drop her off at the clinic and we can head to the NOL headquarters if you're so determined to head to the NOL for something! Don't you want to make sure she's in a safe space and well taken care off at least!?**" Ragna argued as Sora nodded his head. "**Then why are you saying you are going to take her with you to the NOL!? Are you trying to put her life in danger!?**" Ragna said, trying to understand the rationale of Sora's current decision as it was pure nonsense in his mind.

To him, the most logical choice would be to just bring Makoto back to the clinic, have Litchi or her assistant take care of her and then head to the NOL headquarters. That way, she wouldn't be endangered and he would be able to fight without much concern in his mind. "**Tell me then Ragna. What would you do if you are asked by someone you barely know to place someone you care for in the care of someone you don't know at all.**" Sora explained as Ragna was surprised to hear that.

"**Would you leave someone you care about in the care of someone you don't know just because of good word of mouth?**" Sora continued as Ragna had to take a breather hearing that. It's rational to understand the feeling of leaving someone you care about in the hands of a stranger, people would be scared to do something like that. "**Then why don't you just stay with her then. If she's that important to you then her safety should be your top priority.**" Ragna said, understanding what Sora was going through from his own past.

* * *

Sora: **Are you trying to tell me to stay beside her and watch her get better?**

Ragna: **Uhhh...Duh! Isn't that obvious?**

Sora: **That will be the best way to make sure she's safe right?**

Ragna: **Of course you moron! If you really care for her that much then the least you can do is drop what you're doing and go and make sure she's safe at least!**

Sora: **That would be the easiest path to take. I would be able to protect her and she would be safe from danger.**

* * *

Ragna couldn't believe he was hearing. Sora had clearly thought about it. He clearly had rationalized that was the correct choice and that it was the only choice he had. The answer was so clearly easy and spoon fed to him at that moment. "**So if you understand that then...**" Before Ragna could finish his sentence, Sora immediately took a deep breath to stop him from speaking further before exhaling loudly. "**Just because the choice seems obvious doesn't mean it's the right choice to make!**" Sora yelled, making sure his point got to Ragna as he looked at the white haired man with a serious expression.

"**Of course it would be easy to stay with her. Of course it would be easy to take her away from danger and make sure she's safe. But that is not the choice I am going to make. I refuse to ****let the truth slip out of my fingers nor do I choose to abandon Makoto.**" Sora explained as Ragna was shocked to hear that. "**I will instead to choose to do both. I will continue to chase after the truth placed in front of me while I continue to protect Makoto with my own two hands. Is it dumb? Of course it is. Is it reckless? You're right saying that. Isn't there a better and easier choice? I would have picked that choice without hesitation.**" Sora said.

This made Ragna rough grab him by his collar, Sora carefully holding onto Makoto and making sure she didn't slip from his grasps. "**I am not telling you to leave her behind dammit! I am simply saying that she's better off being in a place that is safe for her. And you literally just admitted you are going to be bringing her into danger! What are you stupid!?**" Ragna shouted, hoping to get Sora to realize some damn common sense. He couldn't tell if this person was being an idiot of just stubborn headed right now but he was clearly being reckless.

"**Yeah... I got told that a lot.**" Sora said, not even trying to deny the accusation that Ragna was tossing his way. But before Ragna could raise his voice and chastise him for his choice he got a good look at his face and observed his facial expression at that moment. Ragna at that moment realized that Sora had made a very difficult decision. It was not a decision that was made lightly nor was it a choice that Sora had chose to make out of a childish impulse.

In Sora's eyes and facial expression, Ragna the Bloodedge could see the look of a man who has been through similar situations such as this before. His eyes were dry of tears but the red veins popping out of the whites of his eyes as well as the dry spots on his skin hinting he was suppressing the urge to cry at that moment told Ragna that Sora was personally blaming himself for what had happened to the girl he was holding. Even if he was not directly responsible for the actions that caused this to happen to her, he still blamed himself for leaving her all alone and was determined to not separate from her, even if it meant making his life even more difficult for himself.

Ragna scratched his head at that, unable to believe what he had just heard and also the facial expressions he saw from Sora. It was like looking at the mirror of his younger self in a weird way. The way he would often put the needs of his younger sister over himself as Ragna shook his head and scratched his head, sighing in the process. "**Don't put it on me if something happens to you both them.**" Ragna said, surprising Sora as he looked at Ragna with shock on his face.

Sora had expected Ragna at this point to simply just leave him behind and go on to do his own thing. Sora would have done that himself, to avoid being a burden on other people. Yet this was the decision that Ragna had come to and it was just as surprising to witness as well jarring because he had expected the opposite to occur. Sora couldn't help but feel a sense of gratitude towards the white haired man as Ragna released his grip on Sora's shirt and turned around.

"**Now let's get going already. We're wasting time standing around here and doing nothing.**" Ragna said as he slowly started to walk ahead. Getting ready to make twice the effort to rush towards the NOL base now that they had a third person that needed to be constantly taken care off. Sora couldn't help but feel a sense of gratitude towards the man as he felt like he could trust him with Makoto should anything happen to him in the process as he looked at Ragna.

"**Ragna!**" Sora said loudly as Ragna looked at him confused. "**What is it now kid?**" Ragna questioned as Sora took a deep breath before saying what needed to be said. "**Can you promise something for me?**" Sora questioned as Ragna couldn't help but feel like he was getting his with more and more surprises with each and every time Sora talked to him. "**Look... I can promise you something but I won't be able to guarantee that I will be able to keep it alright.**" Ragna said, Sora understanding why he would say that as Sora quietly nodded his head. Ragna's good enough for him.

"**Can you promise me if anything happens to me... That you would make sure that she's alright?**" Sora questioned as Ragna was surprised to hear that. Hear he was, being asked by someone he had just met today to watch over a girl he barely knew. The level of trust required for such a thing was rather high and he had to doubt the sanity of the man asking this. "**Look... I understand that we just met and what I am asking for is a rather high thing to ask for... But I have nobody else that I can turn to ask about this. I have asked others to do so... but I would feel a bit better if there was more people protecting her.**" Sora explained as Ragna nodded his head, understanding his explanation.

"**I can't promise you anything... but I promise you that I will try my best.**" Ragna promised as he caught Sora making a small smile on his face. "I**n any case, Let's get going right now. We can't be wasting time.**" Ragna said as he soon took off, deciding to go on ahead to make sure the coast was clear in order to protect both Sora and Makoto at the same time as Sora stood still for a bit, looking at Makoto in the face as he stroked her hair for a bit.

Here he was, making another reckless decision that people can say is another idiotic decision from the series of idiotic decisions of his life. Should he had taken the rational and logical choice at that moment? Maybe. But every decision in life is never made with complete certainty. All he can do was simply do his best to live with his choices and own up to them. "_**Don't worry Makoto... I'll make sure not to leave your side.**_" Sora said, gently kissing her in the lips.

* * *

**Promising himself to fulfill that promise to the very end.**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING IN THIS FINE DAY!? I hope you all are doing well because well COVID-19 sure is making things hell for us. Half a year has passed and this disease sure knows how to kick us in the dirt and keep us locked in for longer. All I ask is that people keep safe and don't do anything that will keep us locked in for even longer. We want to go out and return to a sense of normalcy but that normalcy won't return if we keep doing stupid shit right now. So as your daily reminder, You too contribute to slowing down the impact this virus has on our lives right now.**

**SO WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT TO OUR HEROES!? WILL RAGNA AND SORA BE ABLE TO MAKE IT TO THE NOL BASE IN TIME!? WHAT WILL STAND IN THEIR WAY!? WILL SORA BE ABLE TO PROTECT MAKOTO FROM ALL DANGERS OR WOULD HIS CHOICE TO BRING ALONG AN INJURED GIRL COME TO BITE HIM IN THE ASS!? In any other case, we shall see where the path takes our heroes from this point onward.**


	33. Canon 32: Storming The Castle

(A new Canon has arrived! But let us not waste time talking and instead focus on the action coming ahead.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 32

The evening was approaching Kagutsuchi. The orange sky above the 14th hierarchical city signalling to the public that the night was soon approaching. However to the person who bothers to check their watch for the time, there is something particularly strange about this orange sky. "**It's almost 1pm and it's already almost getting dark. Is the weather system malfunctioning?**" An NOL soldier asked his friend as he scratched his head.

"**Last I checked, the weather system was doing fine. Maybe it's a normal phenomena happening right now.**" His friend replied as they looked around to see the NOL troops walking around and patrolling the area. "**Still... is this level of security really needed just outside? Don't we need some people inside to make sure that nobody's sneaking in?**" The soldier questioned as his friend shrugged.

"**Miss Lapislazuli insisted we stayed outside and made sure nobody got inside. Hell I think nobody else is allowed in except her and some of the higher ups.**" the other NOL soldier replied as the first one sighed. "**Why are we always somehow getting stuck with the boring jobs... I know the Ikarugan war has been over for a while now but at least have us get some action like chase after the Grim reaper instead of keeping us in here doing nothing you know.**" the man commented as his friend sighed.

"**What can we do? We are just merely grunts at the end of the day. We just have to follow what we are asked for and hope that we get some more action next time.**" his friend commented before they noticed the men and women start to move quickly. Their commander approached the two with a stern look on his face. "**Come on you two, get a move on it right now!**" he ordered as this surprised the two men.

* * *

Soldier 1: **Is something the matter sir?**

Commander: **I need you two to get moving right now. Our scouts have just spotted Ragna the Bloodedge moving with an accomplice towards here**

Soldier 2: **Really sir!?**

Commander: **Of course dammit! Why do you think everyone's moving out right now!?**

Solider 1: **Could it be that he's going to try and destroy the cauldron like what he did in Akitsu-ko a month ago?**

Commander: **Most likely. We can't risk losing another cauldron right now. Especially with the weird weather we are getting right now. In any case, can we stop having this conversation and you two get your asses down to help right now!**

* * *

Those were the final words they needed to hear from their commander as they gave him a salute, understanding his orders as he quickly rushed out to handle other matters. "**looks like we are getting your wish of capturing the grim reaper. But who's dumb enough to think tagging along with him would be a good idea?**" The soldier wondered as the other one shook his head. "**Look it doesn't matter really, all we got to do is our job and make sure we do it better than the guys in Akitsu-Ko.**" The other said as the two quickly rushed to join with a platoon.

**...Ready to give chase to intercept and arrest the most wanted man in the world...**

* * *

As the NOL troops quickly assembled their forces, Ragna and Sora were unaware that they had been spotted, Ragna quickly moving ahead as Sora continued to carefully run while holding Makoto in his arms. "**We are going to take a right from here.**" Ragna said, making sure to tell Sora the direction he was heading to ensure that Sora did not lose track of him as Sora was busy multi tasking running while carrying the unconscious Makoto Nanaya in his arms in a delicate manner.

With each step Sora took, his arms were constantly making sure to shift to ensure that Makoto remained comfortable in his hands. He didn't want to lose his grip on her and drop her while quickly rushing towards their destination. Any damage she suffered now would simply be too risky and may prove to be fatal. "**Left this time! And watch your head as we do so!**" Ragna shouted as he went into an alleyway to his left, prompting Sora to do the same as he quickly performed a slide to allow both him and Makoto to slip by the narrow passageway Ragna had brought up.

After doing so, the two quickly took a small time out to not only take their breaths but also assess their current situation. "**So it's just a few more lefts and rights from here on out and we should reach the place where I snuck in last time.**" Ragna explained as Sora nodded his head, coddling Makoto a bit in his arms as Sora took a couple of deep breaths, the strain of having to carry someone and keep up with Ragna the Bloodedge's frantic pace reminding him of his early mercenary days where he would spend very little time actually resting.

"**Once we get to that secret spot, we should be able to take it easy from there until we get spotted by some NOL right?**" Sora questioned as Ragna nodded his head. "**I would like to not get spotted, but the last time I went through that route I got ambushed by a guy wearing a white mask.**" Ragna commented as Sora simply nodded his head. "**I****f that happens, how are you going to fight? You got someone you need to carry too don't you.**" Ragna noted as Sora looked at Makoto in his arms.

"**I guess I will only fight unless totally necessary.**" Sora simply replied as Ragna scratched his head. "**At least it's good to hear you're not going to suddenly mercy them. That would have gotten me even more worried if I hear you say stuff like that.**" Ragna commented as Sora couldn't help but smirk, understanding that Ragna did not like the idea of being forced to fight against multiple individuals by himself and being left defenseless in the process.

"**But in any case, we should...**" Before Sora could finish his sentence, his eyes began to dart around for a bit, alarming Ragna as Sora might have spotted something rather off. "**Hey Ragna... don't you think it's weird that the NOL around the city have not been patrolling the streets?**" Sora questioned as Ragna couldn't help but be mildly surprised by that. "**Well I kind of figured that they were busy doing other things around the other parts of the city to be busy looking for us.**" Ragna explained.

"**Then tell me why does my eyes see that we have company with us.**" Sora explained as he pointed his finger towards a glint at a rooftop he had just noticed. The glint was most likely of something used to spy on them like binoculars or the scope of a sniper rifle as this prompted the two to immediately take cover behind something to break line of sight. "**Damn. Do you think it's the NOL that are watching us right now?**" Ragna questioned as Sora simply nodded his head.

"**I am just making a guess here but it's best educated guess I can make right now. Which means that they must be tightening security around the NOL headquarters after you caused trouble back in Akitsu-Ko.**" Sora suggested as Ragna scratched his head. "**Well that's just great. The back route I used last time might be watched right now. That's probably going to be the worst place for us to go if we want to sneak our way in.**"

Ragna's face told Sora everything he had to know at that point. What other route they had at this point. They could continue in their current path of heading towards the secret route but if what Ragna was saying was indeed true, then they might need to reconsider a different route instead. "**We can't just sit here and do nothing. We've got to get moving right now.**" Ragna said as Sora closed his eyes and began to think about a solution that might work.

They could continue on with their current trajectory, head down to Ragna's secret route and take the risk of getting ambushed by the NOL that gather there... or they could take an equally risk if not dumber move but it's more straightforward than what was currently in front of them. "**We can move down the secret route... Or we can just walk through the front door and fight our way through.**" Sora suggested as Ragna looked at him surprised.

He wanted to reject the idea, he wanted to say that Sora was a lunatic for suggesting such an idea. But the more he thought about it, the more it started to make sense as the front door was probably going to be less guarded since they were most likely trying to mobilize their troops to try and intercept them. They will have to fight the NOL in this case but at least it's better than walking into a carefully placed trap by the NOL.

"**If we're walking right through the NOL's front door, I hope you're ready for the fact that we are going to be fighting our way through just to do so.**" Ragna explained as Sora simply nodded his head, understanding the risk that was going to be introduced to them. "**Of course I do.. especially with the fact I have someone I need to protect as well.**" Sora said as Ragna decided to look at the alleyway to make sure the coast was clear and to see if the glint was still present.

"**Looks like the scouts realized that we had noticed them and left... now's the perfect chance for us to get the hell out of here and head straight for the entrance.**" Ragna explained as Sora nodded his head, understanding what that meant. "**Then let's not waste time and just go full speed ahead.**" Sora said, determination now present in his eyes as both Ragna and Sora charged forth, their thoughts no longer focusing on being quiet but rather being fast as this alarmed the NOL scouts that just just refocused their sights on Ragna and Sora after reporting to their bosses.

"**Shit, get NOL headquarters contacted right now! Both Ragna the Bloodedge and his accomplice are on the move right now!**" The scout leader ordered as he continued to keep his gaze on the two criminals, realizing where they were heading. "**And tell them that they are heading straight for the base's entrance!**" The scout added as the base needed to know after ordering the troops to try and flank both Sora and Ragna in an ambush.

As the scout relayed his findings to the chain of command, Ragna and Sora continued to make their way towards the NOL headquarters. Fully exposed to the general public and running down the straight path, both Sora and Ragna did not hesitate nor stop for anything, only simply deciding to keep running ahead and ignoring what may be beside them, focusing on reaching their desired destination as Sora kept his head on a swivel, making sure they were not going to be ambushed by any NOL soldiers trying to head back to the headquarters.

Soon, Sora's eyes managed to caught sight of what looked like NOL troops trying to hurry back to base. Sora didn't say a word to Ragna, merely tapping Ragna's shoulder after shifting Makoto in his arms and pointing him towards the soldiers desperately trying to head back to base. Ragna simply noded his head, understanding the reason for Sora's silence as they did not know if there was any troops that might be next to them that they did not know and would rather not alarm them unless they were spotted. The sight of the troops heading back did not stop them however as they fully committed to the task in front of them.

Soon Ragna noticed a group of NOL soldiers assembling themselves in front of them as he looked at Sora wondering if they should stop. Simply shaking his head, Sora decided that stopping now will simply slow them down as Ragna shook his head, impressed by the man's gutso. "**HOLD IT RIGHT THERE RAGNA THE BLOODEDGE!**" An NOL soldier shouted as Ragna raised up his right arm and began to swirl seithr into his hand.

"**Sorry man! Got no time for you right now!**" Ragna shouted as he pointed his hand right at the gathering troops and shot out a wave of Seithr to blind them with a thick seithr mist as both he and Sora ran right past them, Sora tucking Makoto closer to him as they increased their pace towards their goal. Soon more NOL soldiers gathered in front of them, pouring through the various alleyways that laid in Kagutsuchi.

"**Tch! More of them!**" Ragna swore as he pulled out his aramasa and swung more seithr into the air, blinding the next group of Soldiers in front of them. "**Come on! We got to go before more NOL soldiers get to us!**" Ragna shouted as Sora knew that Ragna was serious when he said that. Without even needing to say another word, both Sora and Ragna picked up their pace once more, trying to run as fast as they could at this point.

Soon, more NOL soldiers started coming out of the woodworks, emerging from various pathways to try and cut Sora and Ragna off from the Main base as Ragna stared engaging with the troops, making sure to knock them out to prevent them from chasing them any further as Sora himself continued to keep pace, using his speed and parkour to dodge the volley of NOL troops trying to restrain him and Makoto in the process.

"**CARNAGE SCISSORS!**" Ragna yelled, gathering seithr into the Aramasa before charging in and unleashing the giant seithr shark to blow back a massive group of NOL soldiers from blocking their way. Clutching Makoto tighter and making sure he curled up more to narrow his body, Sora continued to charge on past the bodies that Ragna had just blasted away. However this pattern of Ragna and Sora just blinding and knocking soldiers away was not going to last as soon Sora and Ragna found themselves being surrounded by NOL soldiers.

"**Looks like we have to fight our way through this. You ready?**" Ragna questioned as Sora simply nodded his head, deciding to place Makoto on the ground before changing his Rev Arm to it's blade mode. "**Surrender now! And you will have the right to be judged by the blue flames of justice!**" An NOL soldier shouted, essentially reading their rites as Sora did not waste any time, charging forward and slammed his blade right into the man's stomach, causing him to cough and recoil from the pain.

"**Or you can just shut up and let's get straight to the action already.**" Sora said as he noticed an NOL soldier approach Makoto with the intention of apprehending her. Without even losing a beat, Sora tossed the Rev Blade right at the man, striking him at the chest as he used his drive to appear in front of the Rev Blade and grab it, swinging it to create distance between the soldiers who were approaching and Makoto.

Another NOL soldier approached, this time with a stun baton as Sora realized he could use that as he parried the attack and sent the baton flying in the air. He then jumped on the man's head and transformed the Rev Blade into it's arm form, grabbing the stun baton with both hands and thrusting the baton right into the back of his opponent's neck, sending in a ton of volts to knock the soldier out as if that did not knock him out, Sora's punch to the back of his head with the Rev Arm surely did as his whole body went limp upon impact.

This alarmed the rest of the soldiers as they didn't know who to focus their attention on. Should they focus on their main target of Ragna the Bloodedge and ignore his companion or go for Sora instead as he was clearly protecting Makoto Nanaya, another person wanted by the NOL for her crimes and was not only missing an arm but also looked to be unconscious. Soon their focus became clear as instead of loudly saying it, they slowly began to shift their focus on apprehending Sora and Makoto, leaving just enough troops to try and keep Ragna busy and to force a surrender from him.

Ragna soon noticed the pattern was developing in front of him, but the NOL were making it difficult for him to intervene. As soon as he punched and slashed at one, another two take his place. It was as if they were factoring in how dangerous of a criminal he was and also his fame of taking on 100 NOL soldiers by himself and winning. All he could do was try to take out enough of the troops standing in his way before he could go and help Sora.

Sora did not mind this however as he was sort of used to being surrounded like this. His eyes were as sharp as a hawk, using the stun baton to take out a few soldiers before tossing it at one who was charging his way. A female NOL soldier then tried to sweep him off his feet but Sora simply stopped her sweep with the heel of his feet and to ensure she was incapacitated, he delivered a kick that dislocated her leg with the amount of force he applied to said kick. The woman's screams were soon drowned out with Sora grabbing her broken leg and tossing her right into more NOL soldiers, causing a crowd to fall as he realized what they were trying to do.

As soon as he realized what they were trying to do, he felt a baton strike him in the back prompting him to quickly turn around and grab the attacker's wrists to violently disarm them, grabbing the weapon as it soared into the air and thrusting it right into the man's chest, unleashing the full power of the volts that were meant for him. At the same time, Sora delivered a roundhouse kick to another NOL soldier as the NOL soldiers began to dogpile both him and the unconscious Makoto.

'_**Goddammit! Just leave us alone already!**_' Sora thought as he looked at the Rev Arm thinking if he should use a Distortion Drive to blast away the crowd. As his mind was thinking about this, Sora could feel something sharp strike the back of his neck as it's barbed features immediately told him it was a stun gun. Using his drive, he quickly managed to rip them off his neck and stabbed them into Two NOL soldiers to cause the person who tried to tase him to taser his comrades instead.

'_**This isn't good. I'm getting overwhelmed here!**_' Sora thought as he was trying his best to both defend himself and Makoto at the same time as he had to keep turning his head towards Makoto and make sure that she was still there and wasn't getting dragged by NOL troops. As soon as he dealt with the current threat, he noticed a big NOL soldier attempting to carry Makoto away as he gritted his teeth, transforming his arm back to it's blade mode.

"**LET GO OF HER YOU BASTARD!**" Sora yelled as he swung his blade, Revving it at the same time to send a blast of Seithr right into the group of soldiers. "**ENHANCED GEAR!**" The Rev Blade yelled as Sora used the momentum of the swing he made to increase his momentum, slashing even harder right at the group like a sudden storm had blown their way, distracting the female soldier who was about to grab Makoto.

Before she could even react at that moment, Sora thrust the hilt of his blade right into her chin, causing one of her teeth to fly out as he grabbed her shirt's collar by tying the hilt of the blade and tossed her to a group of standing NOL troopers. At that point, raised the Rev Blade to guard Makoto, pointing it at the NOL troops to try and fend them off. They were surprised that Sora was able to handle his own against so many trained NOL troops but they could see that he was still human.

And this was what they tried to exploit as two NOL soldiers charged, prompting to swing his blade to create distance only to feel someone grab his wrist and try to judo toss him to the ground. Immediately reacting to avoid taking the full impact, Sora immediately wrapped his legs around the person responsible and tossed them off him while transforming the Rev Blade back to it's arm form. Before he could attach it however another NOL soldier had noticed the transformation and using their long spear, managed to send the Rev Arm flying into the air.

"**NOW! WHILE HE'S UNARMED!**" The soldier shouted as several NOL soldiers quickly surrounded him and tried to tackle him simultaneously at that point. The next second they immediately bumped into each other, slamming hard into each other as this confused the soldiers, prompting them to look into the air. Sora immediately revved the Rev arm before attaching it to his stump.

"_**Fūatsu!**_" Sora screamed as he slammed his fist down to the ground hard. The resulting impact send the wind that was above them crashing to their heads as the ground easily cracked from the pressure of the Rev Arm slamming to the ground, creating a small crater in the process as he used the stunned soldiers as a stepping stone to get away from them and back to Makoto as one of the NOL soldiers had managed to get their hands on her and were trying to take her away from the area, most likely back to the base.

Two big NOL soldiers tried to intercept him but Sora was not going to have any of their shit at this point as he spun his body rapidly to deliver a powerful double kick right to his opponent's faces, sending them flying in the process. Then with speed and violence, Sora immediately clothesline the person who had managed to get their grips on Makoto, sending them flying into the air as he quickly dropped to the ground to catch Makoto in the process.

However this was the chance for the NOL to immediately surround him as even with his drive, Sora couldn't really see a chance for him to quickly stand right back up as the NOL troops had moved in the moment he fell on the ground. As if they had been trying to bait him to go for Makoto to rescue her as their chance to restrain Sora in the process. All Sora could do was simply turn his back to try and protect Makoto as several batons descended upon him, ready to strike.

"**RETURN TO DARKNESS!**" Ragna yelled as Sora had unknowingly assumed a posture that helped Ragna greatly as he held out his hand to send out a massive shock wave of Seithr right at the soldiers, easily blasting them away from Sora and Makoto. "COME ON! WE GOT TO GO NOW!" Ragna yelled as Sora did not waste the chance given to him by Ragna and quickly ran, holding Makoto bridal style and tightly in his hands.

"**DON'T LET THOSE TWO GET AWAY! THE WHOLE FORCE ISN'T BACK AT THE BASE YET!**" A soldier yelled out as this was enough information for the two to know that the straight forward route was going to be their best shot after all. Now with their choice set in stone, both Sora and Ragna ran as fast as they could, ignoring the rest of the NOL as they struggled to get up to their feet and recover from the beatings that they had suffered in the hands of Sora and Ragna.

"**Shit there's so many of them!**" Sora swore as Ragna scratched his head. "**Yeah I know that. Those assholes are just relentless you know.**" Ragna explained as the NOL struggled to try and catch up to them before they got even further. Sora knew that if they kept running like this, they won't be able to make it in time as Sora noticed something that would give them more time. "**Ragna! Catch!**" Sora yelled, getting Ragna's attention as he turned around, wondering what Sora had planned.

As soon as Ragna turned around to face Sora, he immediately had to catch Makoto who Sora had tossed to him as Sora ran towards a wine shop and smashed the store's glass. This immediately caused a couple of the NOL soldiers to dive into the shop to try and intercept him as Ragna continued to run ahead, trusting Sora to take care of his distraction as Sora smashed as many of the wine bottles and their contents, spilling the alcohol everywhere.

"**WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO MY STORE!**" The owner shouted as Sora looked at the guy. "**Vandalizing it. Sorry about this. Just collect the insurance from what I am about to do next and you will be fine.**" Sora advised as he couldn't help but feel bad for what he was going to do next. He was doing this to buy both him and Ragna some time but he cannot help but feel what he was going to do next was going to really suck for the owner.

Grabbing his lighter, Sora sparked it and tossed it right into the alcohol spilled ground. The moment he did so, Every single NOL soldier began to quickly scramble out, struggling to do so as they pushed on each other as hard as they could. The lighter comes in contact with the liquor on the floor and immediately ignited into a blazing flame. Sora himself tossed the Rev Arm out of the shop and used his drive to get out of the burning shop as the NOL soldiers began to panic.

"**Shit! Focus on extinguishing the flames! Quickly before they become worse!**" A soldier shouted as a couple gathered and used water ars magus to extinguish the flames caused by Sora. As they did so, Sora used this as his chance to escape, the NOL soldiers too distracted by the flames to notice that Sora had already slipped past them as some of them rushed to the back of the store, thinking he had retreated through the back of the store.

Ragna himself had noticed the massive blazing distraction that Sora had caused as he passed Makoto back to him the moment they met back up. "**Good job kid. Never thought that you could use alcohol to set a fire like that!**" Ragna complimented as Sora shook his head. "**It won't last for long. The flames just going to be a distraction and that's it.**" Sora explained as Ragna nodded his head. "**In that case, we got to get going towards the NOL base right now.**" Ragna concluded as Sora nodded his head.

"**I am sorry to say, but I just can't let you go and do that right now.**" A voice in front of them said as Ragna and Sora immediately stopped to see in front of them a woman who looked very irritated, cracking her fingers as the cloak of the Zero squadron blew with the wind. "**I have to make sure none of you interfere with whatever is going on at HQ. And you both just happen to catch me in a really bad mood**." The woman said as Sora immediately recognized her as Meifang Lapislazuli.

As Sora and Ragna remained quiet, Meifang's eyes glanced and noticed Makoto Nanaya on Sora's hands. "**I see she's alive. With a missing arm to boot. How fortunate.**" Meifang said as she cracked her fists some more. "**I get vent off some steam and I also get to get the girl I am interested in. Now this is getting better.**" Meifang commented as Sora immediately curled up, shielding Makoto from Meifang's gaze.

"**Oh? Protecting her I see... that's cute and all but it doesn't matter. I will deal with you and the grim reaper regardless of what you do.**" Meifang explained as Sora and Ragna began to weigh down their options. The both of them didn't need to say a word to know that the opponent that they were facing was in fact very dangerous and even if they teamed up against her, they would probably be too late to deal with her.

"**Listen to me here alright. You go on ahead and leave this bitch to me!**" Ragna shouted, surprising Sora as Meifang looked on interested at this development. Ragna the Bloodedge offering to be a shield for someone else? Now that is something you don't see everyday. To Sora however, he did not need to complain or say a word to understand why he would say that. If Sora was here, then they would not only have to focus on fighting Meifang but also protect Makoto at the same time.

Asking to do both at the same time was just unrealistic even if they were capable of doing so. They needed to be rational about this and the best way was for the person who does not need to take care of someone to go on ahead and the person who has nobody to take care off to handle the crazy bitch in front of her. Without even needing to say a word to argue, Sora simply nodded his head at the suggestion. "**Then I leave this to you! Thanks for doing this Ragna!**" Sora said as Sora began to run ahead, intending to run past Meifang as his eyes were focused for any attacks aimed at his way.

"**And where do you think you are going huh?**" as soon as Sora heard those words, Meifang tried to trip him to cause him to lose balance. As soon as Sora felt the tip of her shoes tap on his leg and his balance tip over, he immediately tucked himself into a roll, curling up and making sure Makoto was kept close to him as he immediately recovered from the attempted trip. This made Meifang raise her fist, ready to continue on from that attempted trip only to feel a hand grab her by the wrist.

"**I should be asking you that question Ms LapisLazuli.**" Ragna said as Meifang flicked her hand to toss Ragna's grab to the side as Ragna grabbed her attempt at punching him right at the gut. "**While I would normally be touched by the Grim Reaper knowing who I am, I am in a really sour mood right now so if you don't mind. I think I am going to vent my frustration with you.**" Meifang said as soon, both her and Ragna were trading a series of blows with each other, climaxing with Ragna receiving a punch that he barely blocked with the Aramasa.

"**Well sorry to disappoint you then. As much as you think I am just stalling for the kid. I got business of my own to deal with at your base. So don't expect me to hold back.**" Ragna said, cracking his neck before swinging the Aramasa a bit. Meifang couldn't help but be amused by this as she noticed the NOL soldiers gather behind Ragna, prompting her to raise her hand to stop them. "**Don't bother interfering with this! I will personally handle the grim reaper by myself! Go get the other one!**" Meifang ordered as the soldiers obeyed her orders and tried to follow her orders.

"**Oh not so fast there!**" Ragna yelled, stabbing the ground before creating a massive wave of dark seithr that formed a wall in front of the NOL soldiers. "**As much as I appreciate nobody interfering with our fight. I can't exactly let you go after the kid. He's already got too much on his hands already.**" Ragna said as Meifang clicked her tongue at that. "**So. You are helping him huh... Never thought the Grim Reaper had comrades.**"

"**Don't mistake what I am doing for comrades. I am simply doing this so that the kid owes me a favor in the future. If I beat your ass right now, that's one less person to bother him right now. It's less being comrades and more out of courtesy.**" Ragna said as Meifang scratched her head. "**You really think that you can fight against the head of the Zero squadron?**" Meifang questioned as Ragna scoffed a bit. "**Do you think that you can fight against the one who wields the Azure Grimoire?"** Ragna retorted back as Meifang looked at him annoyed.

"**Oh we are going to be playing this game now... Fine. If this is the game you wish to play I am simply happy to oblige then!**" Meifang said as she assumed a stance ready to fight against Ragna the bloodedge. Ragna himself cracked his neck a little as he knew of Meifang's reputation but knew that with the Azure grimoire he would be able to stand a chance. However that should be saved as a last resort as the two assumed battle positions...

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**...For a fight that does not exist in any other timeline.. A new possibility born.**

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**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING IN THIS FINE DAY!? I have been busy myself working on keeping myself busy to push back the boredom that Covid brings to life sometimes. Do you sometimes miss just being able to go outside without having to worry about dying from some random thing out of nowhere? I do and honestly that really sucks that I have to think like that. All I can simply say is that we are in this together and we need to hang in there.**

**SO WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT!? THIS IS A BATTLE BETWEEN RAGNA THE BLOODEDGE AND MEIFANG LAPISLAZULI!? A BATTLE THAT HAS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE!? WITH UNCERTAINTY OVER THE RESULTS, WHAT WILL HAPPEN THE MOMENT THESE TWO DUEL!? Well now... to find out how this tale will spin itself now, you must stay tuned to read on the next chapter.**

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_**Fūatsu – **_Wind press


	34. Canon 33: The Allure Of The Azure

(A New Canon and something unexpected for once. Let us see the first cracks of a newly forming timeline form in front of us.)

**Bold **= **English Conversations**

**Bold **\+ _Italics_ =_**Japanese Conversations **_

Canon 33

Previously on Canon Distortion

Sora Minakaze and Ragna The Bloodedge were making their way towards the NOL headquarters for their own goals. While Ragna's remains unknown to Sora, Sora was simply heading there following the instructions of the ghost girl that has been following him for the longest time, while deciding to rescue Noel for Makoto's sake while taking care of Makoto. Their way was blocked by the NOL themselves with Ragna staying behind to deal with Meifang LapisLazuli and give Sora time to head towards the NOL Base... which is where this story shall focus on.

And now, the continuation of Canon Distortion

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When Ragna first woke up for this day, he had simply expected things to be simple. He was going to head to the NOL base, go and meet up with Terumi and face him off once and for all. What ended up happening instead was him meeting with a white haired man that he barely knew, a squirrel girl missing an arm and so much chaos in front of him. Now he was facing off against one of the most dangerous squadrons in the NOL and their head honcho, Meifang LapisLazuli in a fight that was going to most likely be a battle to the death.

'**Why does have my luck have to be so shitty right now.**' Ragna thought as he raised the Aramasa to block one of Meifang's fists, the metal of his blade simply clanging upon impact of Meifang's fist which would have caused people to recoil in pain after doing so. Yet Meifang had a look on her face that seemed to imply she was enjoying this. "**What the hell is wrong with you!?**" Ragna yelled out as Meifang simply smirked.

"**What? Can't a girl have her kinks?**" Meifang taunted as she swung a roundhouse kick to try and force Ragna's blade into the air. This made Ragna react by deploying Aramasa's scythe mode to swing it right down on Meifang's head. Meifang's reflexes were fast enough to palm strike the blow to the side as blood briefly splashed out of her hand before Ragna could see the wound on her hand instantly stitch itself back to normal as Ragna retracted the Aramasa to block Meifang's punch once more.

'**Ars Magus? Looks like she's using strengthening Ars Magus.**' Ragna observed as it would make sense as to why she was able to tank the damage he was delivering from his blade. '**If that's the case, Why not we use some Ars Magus as well!'** Ragna thought as he raised up his right arm, ready to use the Azure Grimoire to try and attack her with Ars Magus. Meifang however was not going to let him have his way as she struck the arm of the Azure Grimoire to the side as the black mass ejected out of it, nearly striking a couple of NOL Troopers who were by the side.

Meifang however was unfazed, simply focusing on her efforts to take down Ragna The Bloodedge. "**So this is the mythical Azure Grimoire everyone's talking about. I can see why everyone wants you right now.**" Meifang noted as Ragna grunted, annoyed by that as he didn't want to be making small talk right now with his enemy and instead just wanted to get this over with. "**Look Miss, I don't think you realize how busy I am but I am very busy right now. So if you would be kind and just step by the side I will really appreciate that!**" Ragna said as this made Meifang frown.

"**Awww. Think I am being a waste of time to you?**" Meifang teased as Ragna began to swing his right arm, causing the seithr swimming around to follow his movements as Meifang raised her arm to guard the barrage of Ars Magus blows. While her Ars Magus prowess is considered higher than normal individuals in the NOL, the fact that she was able to feel such blows echo through her body was enough to give her a rush.

"**If I have to be honest... Yeah, You're really a big waste of time right now!**" Ragna complained as using the energy built up in his right arm, Ragna unleashed a massive Black Beast head to slam right into Meifang, causing both him and her to have massive distance between each other. "**So if you don't mind, I am going to finish you off right now!**" Ragna shouted as he gripped the Aramasa tightly in his hand and slashed the ground, creating a massive wave of black seithr to charge right at Meifang's direction.

"**Oh? In that case...**" Meifang simply assumed a low stance and waited for the mass of Seithr surging towards her. Without even hesitating at that moment, Ragna witnessed the wave of Seithr he had sent Meifang's way simply split apart as if it was water when it collides with an obstacle. Ragna's eyes couldn't help but widen a bit at that as Meifang's fist glowed bright red from impact. "**Do you really think I am being a waste of time to you right now?**" Meifang questioned as Ragna was not prepared to see something like that.

'**So this is the power of the head of the Zero Squadron...**' Ragna thought as he had figured her only redeeming factor was the fact that she seemed to be enjoying the pain being inflicted on her and that she was using that to fuel her attacks. Seeing her simply split apart one massive attack him like that was enough to raise alarms about how dangerous she was. "**Looks like I got your attention right now. That's good to see indeed.**" Meifang said, amused that Ragna the Bloodedge was finally paying attention to her right now and thus might give her more of a taste of the Azure Grimoire.

"**So please keep me entertained hmmm!**" Meifang said as she soon charged right for Ragna, her fists cracking as Ragna could see the wind behind her thrown fist crackling violently, prompting him to use the Aramasa to deflect the blow to the side, causing a clean hole to be created on the ground as Ragna quickly retaliated by slashing at her back, gashing her clothes and exposing the skin behind her back as it bled only to see the wound quickly heal itself back up.

This did not discourage Ragna as he allowed the seithr on his right arm to start flowing out of Aramasa, swinging once more and managing to land a hit that caused damage to occur as he had struck Meifang's back once more, this time a wound had formed and remained as Meifang's face had a look of enjoyment at the pain she briefly had felt. "**Good...That's right...This is pain!**" Meifang shouted as she grabbed Ragna's arm and judo tossed him straight to the ground, exposing his stomach to a swift and powerful strike with her fist, intending to create a hole on her stomach.

However her fist did not land at it's target, staying still in fact as she noticed how her fist was struggling to land it's blow as Ragna had quickly formed seithr to act as a cushion right at his stomach. Now that he could feel the impact of the punch that would have landed on his body literally swim itself on his body, he could feel a ripping sensation on the seithr itself as Ragna quickly kicked Meifang in the head to get her off him and stand himself back up, touching his stomach instinctively.

'**What on Earth is that move? It's like a drill was trying to dig it's way to my stomach!**' Ragna thought as Meifang simply grinned. "**Looks like you're the first one to survive my technique... Good. It would have been boring if you died from something as simple as that.**" Meifang said as she cracked her fists, assuming a martial pose as her expression changed once more. "**Looks like I can afford to go a bit harder on you than I normally would... Maybe you can give me the same fight the Mad Dog of Sector Seven once gave me**"

The moment Meifang made her statement, she quickly stepped forward, her left food stepped forward first as it cracked the ground with ease as she thrust her elbow right into Ragna's stomach. The impact was enough to send Ragna through a shop window despite him using the Aramasa to block the attack as he violently crashed right into a store counter top. The wood immediately exploded and splinters came rushing out as Meifang did not relent, grabbing Ragna's collar and tossing him out of the store as she was moving much quicker than what he had expected.

Ragna could sense the danger lingering in the air as he quickly recovered and decided that the Aramasa was going to be too slow for him to block Meifang's attacks and thus he needed to rely on the martial arts his master had taught him. Deciding not to rely on his eyesight due to how fast his opponent was moving, he decided to instead focus on sensing her movements as he waited patiently for Meifang's next blow as it came quickly.

At that moment, using a barrier, Ragna parried her first attack while dodging the next punch aimed at his face. The two pronged attack was soon followed with a swift kick aimed right at his stomach which he had managed to grab as he tossed her right into a light pole, causing the pole to bend in the process as he quickly used the Azure grimoire to create a wave of Seithr to charge right at Meifang.

"**DEAD SPIKE!**" Ragna shouted, the shark like seithr wave itself threatening to swallow Meifang whole as she quickly reacted by stepping to the side. Before Ragna could continue, he immediately sensed another attack from Meifang come at his way as this time she used one of her palms right into Ragna's stomach before arching her back, ready to deliver another possible finishing blow as Ragna himself immediately parried the attempted finishing blow, feeling the powerful sensation surge through the Azure grimoire itself.

At first he had thought it was a blow enhanced by Ars Magus itself. However the fact that even the Azure Grimoire trembled upon feeling told him that blow was something much more than just pure Seithr. "**A drive? Or forbidden art?**" Ragna wondered out loud as he traded some blows with Meifang, delivering a big boot right into Meifang's face before striking her in the stomach to create distance.

"**Oh? Becoming interested in me huh?**" Meifang teased as Ragna shook his head. "**Of course not! I am just interested in knowing what kind of Ars Magus...if at all, allows a person to simply create holes on anything their fists connect.**" Ragna questioned as Meifang simply chuckled hearing that. "**Why that's a secret... and even if I had told you, I would have to kill you anyways.**" Meifang commented, annoying Ragna with her response as she was clearly content in keeping her secret attack a secret... not that he had expected her to tell her anyways despite how prideful she looked.

"**In any other case... I must admit, the Azure grimoire's not what everyone's saying it to be. All I see is smoke on mirrors.**" Meifang taunted, wanting to see if she could tempt Ragna the Bloodedge to show her more of the Azure's power to her. "**Heh. Well I'm sorry if I am currently disappointing you, but going all out every single time I use this thing is exactly the reason why not a lot of people know about it.**" Ragna retorted, making Meifang grin even more at the cheeky remark tossed her way. "**So you're saying I am not worth knowing about your Azure Grimoire?**" Meifang questioned.

"**Yeah. I say that's about right.**" Ragna commented as he stretched a bit to relieve the tension that Meifang's attacks were putting on his joints and bones. "**Hmph, In that case, then you don't need to know about my technique... not that I ever intended to tell anybody about it in the first place.**" Meifang commented as without even bothering to give Ragna a break, Meifang charged for him once more, a barrage of fists accompanying her as Ragna once again was put in the defensive posture.

'**Dammit. If I use my Azure Grimoire at it's full power I will be able to overwhelm her. But she's not letting me do so!**' Ragna angrily thought as he swung the Aramasa in a cleaving manner to force Meifang to retreat as he quickly raised the Azure grimoire to begin the incantation needed to unleash the Blazblue. Meifang however knew about the unique properties of the Azure Grimoire thanks to a certain snake telling her all of the info she needs to know.

'**As if I would let you use your grimoire knowing the stories about that thing.**' Meifang thought as she grabbed the pole she had crashed right into and hurled the massive street light right at Ragna, immediately forcing him to break his incantation to form a barrier instead to deflect the pole, causing the whole pole to simply crash right into another building in the process. As soon as that happened, Meifang used her distraction to immediately close the gap, slapping Ragna's barrier up into the air and exposing his chest to a direct blow from her fist.

'**Shi...**' Ragna's thoughts could barely form as Meifang's fist came flying at his direction at a speed which would have easily made a hole on his chest that would kill him instantly. Meifang was sure that she was going to deliver a killing blow at this very moment as she was aware of Terumi's interests in Ragna The Bloodedge. '**As they say, an eye for an eye... an interest for an interest!**' Meifang thought as her fist was filled with pure killing intent at that moment, ready to spite Terumi for what he had done to her own target.

Her fist soon met their target... but instead of blowing a hole like she had expected, she could hear the sound of metal crashing and exploding violently as metal shards shattered at her face, causing her to close her eyes as she could hear the sounds of something gliding in the air. Ragna himself had a much better view of this happening as the thing that stopped him from dying were a pair of metal blades that formed a spiral shape that blocked the attack at the last moment.

The blades themselves lacked any sign of guard or hilt even, just a pair of metal blades shaped to be swords as Ragna has seen these pair of blades before. He is all too familiar with them as Meifang felt a presence coming towards her, stepping back as a pair of blades fired themselves right to the ground where she stood as a figure descended down to stand in her way to killing Ragna the Bloodedge. Ragna himself was alarmed by the person standing in front of him as he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

In front of him was a blonde haired girl braided into a long ponytail with an ornament at the end but that was the most normal thing about her. She wore a mono eyed visor that complimented her black and yellow trimmed bodysuit with various pieces of armor surrounding her with particular attention placed on her legs with the armor there forming a pair of sword legs for her to use. Ragna couldn't believe who had just protected him as the woman formed more blades behind her.

"**Lambda 11, arriving on the scene.**" the girl known as Lambda 11 said as Ragna couldn't believe what he had just heard. Lambda... the girl he had met a few days before all of this chaos. The same girl he took care off for an afternoon before she got taken away by Tager under Kokonoe's orders. Shouldn't she be following Kokonoe's orders right now? Was this a part of Kokonoe's plans or something else entirely.

"**Are you alright Ragna?**" Lambda questioned as Ragna did not know how to react at that moment but he simply did not care right now. "**Y-Yeah... Thanks Lambda.**" Ragna said, feeling strange that he was saved by a Murakumo unit of all things. Especially with how she resembled... no, now was not the time to let things like that linger in his mind as Lambda simply nodded her head. "**Understood... Lambda 11 engaging hostile. Main directive to protect Ragna.**" Lambda said with a cold, calculating tone.

"**Oh? A new opponent appearing to save Ragna The Bloodedge? Could this be Sector Seven's secret weapon?**" Meifang theorized as Lambda fired her sword projectiles right at Meifang once more to create distance from Ragna and keep Meifang busy. Meifang herself was able to dodge the attacks as she grabbed one of them as it flew towards her and tossed it right at a pair of blades, causing Lambda's blade barrage to deflect away by the side.

"**Regardless, Let's see what you got there little miss!**" Meifang shouted as she charged right for Lambda, raising her arms and using ars magus to block the projectiles fired right at her as she ignored the opposition standing in her way to focus her attention right onto Lambda. Lambda kept mobile, using her sword legs to dash back quickly as she continued to fire projectiles right at the Zero Squadron head, making sure she didn't suddenly close the gap from out of nowhere.

Ragna himself could only watch in slight shock before realizing he could run right now and go to the NOL base right now. Lambda was proving to be a great distraction to keep Meifang at bay so he could get going at that moment and just leave Meifang to Lambda... but could he really just do that to her? Just chuck his problem right into her hands even if she's just doing what seemed to be a series of orders? Ragna could simply ponder on his choice as he continued to watch the scene in front of him.

Meifang scanned the scene in front of her, trying to understand her new opponent carefully to make sure she didn't make any mistakes. The way her new opponent used her swords as projectiles told her that she had what seemed to be an infinite supply of swords she could deploy from out of nowhere. '**So there's no point in me trying to deflect or destroy those swords huh... Interesting.**' Meifang thought as she grabbed a trash can's lid and tossed it right at a projectile aimed at her, the speed the sword was going was fast enough to create a dent on the material itself as Meifang dived for a telephone pole in front of her to let it tank more of the hits coming for her.

While the large telephone pole in front of her was able to tank up the damage that was flying her way, Meifang did not linger for much longer as she sprinted forwards, making sure to keep herself moving in order to not get shot by a stray sword. The accuracy of the shots themselves were also something to note as well. Most people often struggle hitting people with their arrows against moving targets so to feel several shots coming her way as a massive barrage with high amounts of accuracy is something to both commend and worry.

'**If she's that accurate with her shots, does this mean she's using some sort of targeting enhancer?**' Meifang thought as she dived into another pole, waiting for the next barrage but none came. Instead she felt a dangerous sensation as she raised her arms to block the next attack coming her way as the pole was easily sliced by Lambda's sword legs. If it wasn't for Meifang's ars magus arts, she would have been cut in two from her block as she could see blood drip out of her hands from the shallow cut that had begun to form.

"**Enemy target using defensive Ars Magus. Switching tactics.**" Lambda said out loud as she immediately continued her barrage of blades, forcing Meifang to block as the swords stacked to further try injuring Meifang, which made Meifang grin as this told her that Lambda was truly trying to either incapacitate or kill her. She was also not holding back her blows as each hit would have easily broken a bone or two should they have collided onto a person who did not know how to use reinforce Ars Magus in the way she was applying it.

"**Impressive! Show me more! Show me even more!**" Meifang shouted as Lambda was able to notice how resilient her opponent was. She knew she needed to either change up her pattern of attack or continue to overwhelm her opponent with the hopes of that her reinforcement Ars magus would not be able to hold for much longer. '**Enemy displaying enjoyment of pain... must take note of excitement levels for potential spikes in adrenaline.**' Lambda noted as adrenaline can lead to increased levels of activity which can mean more unpredictability.

'**Confirming the usage of Distortion drives to counter enemy movements.**' Lambda quickly thought as Meifang could feel an energy emit out of Lambda, alerting the experienced Zero Squadron commander that Lambda was going to use a distortion drive against her in that moment. At that moment, angling her feet for an explosive burst of power to charge right at Lambda, Meifang immediately used a combination of Reinforcement Ars Magus and Speed Ars Magus to catapult herself right at Lambda.

But before she could even touch Lambda with her speed, Ragna got right in the way of Meifang's charge, delivering a heel kick right at the back of her head as this alarmed Lambda as she grabbed Ragna to ensure he didn't fall down and gently glided down to put him on the ground. "**What are you doing?**" Lambda asked innocently as Ragna looked at her with a semi annoyed and serious face. "**Helping you of course you idiot.**" Ragna said as Lambda tilted her head with some confusion.

"**Why are you helping Lambda?**" Lambda questioned as Ragna scratched his head a lot. He knew from what Lambda was doing she could have handled what Meifang was going to do on her own but he couldn't help it. "Look. I just wanted to alright. Now let's just take care of this lunatic now before things get hairy alright." Ragna said, trying to minimize the amount of conversation he wanted to have with the Murakumo unit as the more he looked at her the more he couldn't help but feel sick on his stomach.

"**Ow...I couldn't help but just feel that just now.**" Meifang commented as she rubbed the back of her head, able to finally feel the full brunt of the pain. "**You like that huh? You masochistic bitch.**" Ragna commented as Meifang couldn't help but laugh at his comment. "**Of course I did! Do you know how rare it is to feel pain? To feel such power be delivered to me by someone as strong as you?! I cannot help but feel like I am being kept in the dark now and that is really annoying!**" Meifang commented as Ragna spat on the ground, to both clear his throat and to feel disgust at what he was hearing.

"**Getting angry over the enemy is not a good idea Ragna. It may lead to you exposing yourself to more danger.**" Lambda advised as Ragna scratched his head. He knew what he was doing and knew that Lambda was speaking the truth but he didn't want to speak any further and well annoy himself even further. All he needed to do right now was simply focus on the fight ahead and not allow his feelings over the Murakumo units right now get over him.

"**In any case... Who cares. I have seen enough from that girl. I'm just going to end this right now.**" Meifang said as she jumped away from Ragna and Lambda, angling herself on the ground to quickly sprint herself towards the two once more with a great speed as Lambda didn't waste time interfering with that plan with Lambda activating her distortion drive by forming a gate in front of her before a massive barrage of blades came flying through the barriers, barraging Meifang with a wave of swords to try and force her to dodge.

Meifang herself at this point was able to see the repeating pattern Lambda was giving her. Constantly shooting out her blades while creating distance. Normally against such an opponent, she could just charge in and close the gap to stop the projectile spamming opponent from firing any more projectiles. This was different however as Ragna himself charged with the the blade barrage, Slipping to her backside to force Meifang to directly deal with both the blade barrage and Ragna himself in a pincer attack.

Meifang did not really care about the damage that could be done with such a pincer but at the same time the more she minimized the damage, the more she can truly enjoy the pain being inflicted onto her. Meifang soon stared to move sideways, forcing Lambda to move the gate which allowed the blade barrage to keep track. As she did so, Ragna added to her struggles by both swinging his fists and Aramasa to force Meifang to slow down and allow the barrage to catch up to her.

Meifang knew she needed to break line of sight for a bit so she slipped right into a restaurant forcing the blade barrage to eviscerate through the contents of the restaurant as tables and chairs got destroyed, sending splinters all over the place. Lambda could have continued but something unconsciously told her to stop as Ragna had given chase to Meifang in the restaurant, causing Lambda to subconscious worry that she was going to hit Ragna in the process through blind fire.

"**What are you doing Lambda?! Just keep going!**" Ragna yelled out loud, he himself wondering why she suddenly stopped firing as Meifang used the restaurant's narrow space and her martial arts to her advantage as while Ragna may be trained in hand to hand combat, he still clearly favoured the use of his sword and Azure grimoire as Meifang made sure she stayed close to him, preventing him from pulling the Aramasa from his back as she swung a fist right for his rib cage, making him dodge in the process.

Dodging however did not give him enough time to pull out his massive blade however as Meifang immediately closed the gap and stepped on his foot with her own foot. She then quickly delivered a palm strike to Ragna's stomach which caused him to look down on the ground, opening him up to a quick uppercut from Meifang's punch as she finished Ragna with a double palm strike, sending him flying towards a wine barrel placed in the restaurant as a decoration, causing it to explode into a splintered mess.

Lambda had floated down at this point to get a better line of sight into the restaurant itself to make sure she could see Ragna. She would easily without hesitation would have fired a barrage into the restaurant and possibly blindly struck Meifang in the process. But with Ragna inside, the only option she had at this point was to simply go in herself and try to fight up close and personal despite that being a worse option for her current parameters.

And Ragna could have considered himself lucky that Lambda had picked to charge in to the restaurant instead of just continuing to scan outside to see him because Meifang was not going to stop at any moment. Having to form a quick seithr barrier from the Azure grimoire to block Meifang's fatal strike for his heart as her fist continued to push down on the barrier. Ragna noticed Lambda at the corner of his eye and instead of immediately pushing back and forcing Meifang to the corner, he allowed her to push up on his guard to give Lambda the perfect chance to land a solid hit.

"**NOW YOU IDIOT!**" Ragna screamed as this loud shout was to surprise Meifang as suddenly, she felt a pair of swords land right on her side as she turned to see Lambda herself, floating in the air briefly to strike her at her side with both of her bladed sword legs. Ragna quickly followed up with his own counter attack by punching Meifang right in the face with the Azure Grimoire, sending her flying through the restaurant wall and back to the outside as Ragna looked at Lambda at that moment.

"**Lambda can you give me some cover real quick? I promise I won't be long.**" Ragna asked as Lambda simply nodded her head and chased after Meifang quickly. As she did so, Ragna assumed his posture and began to allow the seithr in the air to once again flow into his Azure Grimoire. He felt the azure grimoire pulse as he allowed his mind to focus on gathering the seithr in the air and to fully release the power of the Azure Grimoire to try and finish Meifang off immediately.

"**Restriction 666 released...**" Ragna chanted as the belts surrounding his right arm slowly started to undo themselves. At first one might see this to be excessive and just for fashion, but these belts around the Azure Grimoire were actually limiters designed to limit the power of Azure Grimoire and thus how much he is able to pull from it. Over the years he has had this grimoire attached to his arm, he required less and less restraints to fully unleash it's power but nevertheless, he still uses them so that the NOL cannot simply track him using Seithr detection technology.

But something was wrong this time, his hand began to tremble as the seithr flowing through his right arm began to swirl uncontrollably, causing him pain in the process as he dropped to one knee from the sudden sensation. '**W-What's...Going on. ****This isn't right**' Ragna thought as the pain became increasingly higher as Lambda continued to fire her barrage of swords to try and keep Meifang away from Ragna but she turned her head and noticed the extreme pain Ragna was in.

"**Ragna..**" Lambda said, a pain unknown to her growing in her heart as Meifang noticed the direction Lambda was looking at. Seeing Ragna in pain and how he was in a vulnerable position, Meifang saw it as her chance to completely kill Ragna outright as while the Azure grimoire was truly a valuable item, it doesn't need a person to be alive to use it as Meifang reinforced of her arms at that moment and and simply punched back at the barrage, causing a cascade of blades to spill as Lambda was surprised by this, taking her attention away as Meifang quickly reinforced her legs for an explosive blast of energy.

"**YOU'RE MINE!**" Meifang shouted as she quickly blasted herself right towards Ragna and slammed her shoulder right into Ragna's chest, causing him to violently cough as he flew right into a wall, causing him to get embedded right into it as he struggled to try to remove himself. Meifang then pointed her hands in a palm position, gathering seithr right into her palm as she intended to finsh Ragna off with this one strike.

"**Shatter... Palm Breaker**." Meifang said as with her fist, she performed a one inch punch motion, sending the seithr that had collected right into her hand blasting right into Ragna's direction in a focused blast aimed directly towards his chest. Ragna tried to muster up as much Seithr as possible to create a reinforcement Ars Magus strong enough to tank the attack but much to his surprise, the attack was coming much faster than what he had expected.

"**Shi...**" Before he could finish his sentence, a massive hunk of metal slammed itself right in front of Ragna, immediately taking the hit in Ragna's place as a pair of blades immediately emerged in front of the large metal blade of the Lux Sanctus Murakumo, forming several barriers as Lambda came down in front of Ragna and began to try and pry Ragna off the wall. She had completely purged her armor off her, reducing her to just a bodysuit that went down her arms and half of her legs and a massive cloak that went with it as she struggled to do so.

"**W-WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?**" Ragna shouted as Lambda struggled to do so, her body small and thus lacking the strength needed to fully remove Ragna from the wall. "**Protecting...Ragna.**" Lambda simply said as the sound of metal shattering could be heard as Lambda continued to struggle. "**You idiot! Get the hell out of here before you get hit!**" Ragna shouted as Lambda's efforts had managed to free him a little for him to start prying himself off the wall.

"**Order Refused.**" Lambda said, ignoring what Ragna said as more metal blades shattered upon impact as Lambda could see she was losing more and more of her blades. Soon she was simply left with just the gigantic Murakumo unit itself as Lambda gave up trying to pry Ragna off the wall and simply instead focused on trying to shield Ragna the best she could. "**Removing Idea Engine Limiters. ****Maximizing Output****.**" Lambda said as the Murakumo unit hummed to life, releasing a sudden burst of energy that was able to fight against Meifang's attack as she quickly formed a barrier Ars Magus to act as a last line of defense.

"**Lambda will protect Ragna.**" Lambda simply spoke, her intentions clear as Meifang couldn't help but smirk at this as she found this both admirable and foolish at the same time. "**In that case... You can die alongside the Grim Reaper.**" Meifang said as she raised her free hand, collecting Seithr into that hand before lunging forth and slamming the Murakumo unit with the built up seithr in a palm formation. The sheer impact of the strike was enough to heavily damage the Murakumo Unit, causing Wind Ars Magus to flow past the Murakumo unit and strike Lambda directly at her barrier, causing both her and Ragna to smash through the wall in the process, creating a massive hole in the wall with several cracks present in the process.

The NOL troops who were watching this to avoid being casualties were stunned by this. They knew they should have gone in to help out Meifang with the sudden appearance of the girl but knowing the Zero Squadron leader's capabilities, it is simply an unknown if she was going to even care if they were there. Meifang herself did not mind the destruction she had caused since it was the NOL's duty at the end of the day to pay for the damages she caused though she would have preferred to avoid such destructive means in the first place.

Ragna was left on the ground, staggered as Lambda had managed to keep her barrier up. "**Hurry...Ragna.**" Lambda said, her voice strainned as her arms trembled, barely able to stop Meifang's sudden attack that she was struggling to process if it was either a supercharged Ars Magus or a Distortion Drive. Ragna himself knew that he had to hurry and activate the Azure Grimoire at that point as he quickly refocused on trying to reactivate the Azure Grimoire, having stopped mid incantation due to the sudden surge of pain he had felt.

"**Dimension Inteference Field Deployed!**" Ragna yelled as an energy of blue seithr began to gather itself all over his right hand, slowly swimming itself in a black like seithr as Meifang couldn't help but be annoyed by Lambda's persistence. "**Why can't you just ****make ****things**** easier for me ****already and just die.**" Meifang shouted as she charged right for Lambda and slammed her fist right into Lambda's barrier, causing multiple cracks to appear in the process as Lambda's hands bled at that moment, her system reaching the limits of her operation time.

"**Must...Protect...Ragna.**" Lambda simply said as despite the struggle she had maintaining the barrier, despite the drain using the Idea Engine to it's brink bringing her to her limits. Something inside her, simply just wanted to protect Ragna with all she could as Meifang's next fist smashed right through her barrier, grabbing Lambda right at her neck as she slowly felt Meifang choke the life out of her, Meifang's eyes determined to eliminate the threat in front of her before moving towards Ragna.

"**BLAZBLUE! ACTIVATE!**" Ragna yelled as the Azure grimoire responded to his call, sending a massive blue orb to immediately push Meifang off Lambda, allowing Lambda to breathe once more as Meifang felt the power of the Azure Grimoire hit her for the first time. Her body simply shivered at the sensation she felt as Ragna had managed to catch Lambda in his hands. "**Dammit... What the hell were you thinking?!**" Ragna questioned as Lambda looked at Ragna, not realizing that she was smiling at that moment.

"**Thank goodness...You're alright Ragna.**" Lambda said as Ragna tched at that. "**Don't say stuff like that you idiot. No point protecting anybody if you die...**" Ragna said, trying to keep his distance from the Murakumo unit as she nodded her head. As he did so, the heaviness of the Azure Grimoire made it difficult for him to keep holding Lambda, forcing him to lie her on a wall for her to sit down. "**I understand... Lambda's too damaged to keep helping.**" Lambda said as Ragna scratched his head at that. He couldn't help but be reminded of Sora and how he was taking care of his girl with her injuries. He cannot afford to be doing the same thing with Lambda now.

"**Please... Allow Lambda to help you**." Lambda said as she raised her hand and Ars Magus circles formed between her and Ragna. This surprised him greatly as he could start to hear a noise start to burrow into his mind. "**W...at are you doing Lambda!? Why are the Idea Engine readings!?**" the voice said in shock as Ragna felt the heavy weight that was placed on him before suddenly leave him, replaced with a lightness that began to envelop his body.

"**Establishing Link to Azure Grimoire. Idea Engine Engage."** Lambda said as Ragna could not explain it but he knew something was changing. The Azure Grimoire... something about it was starting to change in a way that he couldn't explain. "**Lambda what are you...!?**" before he could question any further, his body immediately responded to an attempt from Meifang to try and strike him, grabbing her fist with the Azure Grimoire.

"**Amazing...so this is the power of the Azure Grimoire?**" Meifang said, her eyes gazing at the Grimoire with interest as something in Ragna told him that he needed to end the fight quickly otherwise something bad was going to happen. The lightness he was currently feeling at that moment was most likely a temporary sensation and whatever Lambda had done it was helping to alleviate the sudden violent reaction he had with the Azure Grimoire.

Meifang herself could not notice the discomfort in Ragna's face, her gaze simply fixated on the Azure Grimoire itself. Here it is, right in front of her, the grimoire rumored to be the most powerful grimoire ever created by the great Sage Nine herself. The power it must be have to possess such a reputation must be immense. '**I must see it for myself... the power of the Azure Grimoire!**' Meifang thought as she tensed up her fists before lunging for Ragna, ready to attack him once again.

Ragna however was not going to waste any more time... not that he was not wasting time in the first place by allowing Sora to go on ahead without him. He had to head on to the NOL headquarters right now and Meifang was standing in his way of doing so. Even after he had handled Meifang, what was he going to do with Lambda? '**Tch! Got too much to think about and I am doing nothing. What's wrong with me!**' Ragna angrily thought as using the Azure Grimoire, he formed a double layered barrier, one to take the impact of Meifang's fist crashing into it and soften the blow and the second barrier to capture the fist as Meifang found her fist stuck in the barrier itself.

Quickly acting from that, Ragna engulfed the Azure grimoire in seithr and lunged right at Meifang, slamming his fist on her head. "**GAUNTLET!**" Ragna shouted as he arched his body a bit to deliver a powerful kick right into Meifang's face as it was lowering to send her flying. "**HADES!**" Ragna finished as Meifang flew through the restaurant and back to the outsides of the street as he stepped out to stare right at Meifang as she slowly recovered from the blow delivered to her.

The sensation she had felt at that moment was completely different. Her reinforcement Ars Magus at that moment had seemed to fail to absorb the blow and her sense of pain was temporarily overidden at that moment with a sensation of pain she had never felt before. It was not the physical kind of pain she was normally used to dealing with but a more mysterious sensation. She couldn't explain it herself because of how vague that pain really was... but it was a sensation that sent a jolt into her veins.

'**W-What...is this rush I am feeling?**' Meifang thought as she stood up only to see Ragna immediately charging towards her, thrusting the Aramasa ahead and sending the seithr flowing from the Azure Grimoire right into her, causing her staggered self to feel the full brunt of the pain as she saw Ragna carve the ground. "**CARNAGE SCISSORS!**" Ragna shouted as he slashed right at the ground, carving it up to send a wave of Seithr right towards her that immediately engulfed her in that instant.

Meifang tried to shield herself from the wave of Seithr with multiple barriers, but the damage had already been done. The same sensation of pain she had felt before echoed even more inside her as she couldn't hide the excitement that was beginning to grow inside her as this new level of pain she never thought she would get to experience. '**More... I need to experience this more!**' Meifang thought as she reached out and grabbed Ragna by his head.

"**MORE! LET ME SEE MORE OF THE AZURE GRIMOIRE!**" Meifang screamed as Ragna became annoyed at Meifang's excitement, annoyed that she was demanding such things from him as Lambda found herself struggling to maintain the connection. "**What are you doing Lambda!? Drop the connection now before you die already!?**" The voice that Ragna had heard before screamed as this made him look at Ragna, noticing her heavily panting as he quickly looked back at Meifang and made a gesture with his hand.

"**OH JUST SHUT THE HELL UP!**" Ragna yelled as he made a massive mass of Seithr grab Meifang and hold her in place, alarming the NOL Troops as they quickly approached her the moment they saw Ragna running back into the restaurant. "**Quick! Get whatever is holding her off her right now!**" An NOL Soldier ordered as the NOL members started to struggle trying to remove the Seithr hand gripping Meifang tightly at that moment.

"**Lambda! What the hell are you doing idiot!?**" Ragna shouted as Lambda looked at him with sweat dripping down her face. "**Trying to help you Ragna.**" Lambda said, an innocence present in her voice as Ragna scratched his head. "**Well stop whatever you're doing right now! You're going to kill yourself if you keep this up!**" Ragna said, surprising the person who had been trying to get Lambda to stop.

"**Hello?! Hello! Do you hear this Ragna The Bloodedge!?**" The voice shouted as Ragna held his head a bit. "**Yeah. I do...Wait a minute..**" Now that Ragna was now not placing his full attention to the battle in front of him, he could finally pay attention to the voice that was trying to speak to him. "**Professor Kokonoe, Is that you?**" Ragna questioned as Kokonoe from the comms scratched her head in frustration of the current situation. "**Okay look. Can you just help me convince Lambda to stop her link with your Azure Grimoire right now! She's denying my Access for some reason and I can't stop her from killing herself!**" Kokonoe screamed, hastily typing through the various commands, trying to get the idea engine inside Lambda to shut down but stubbornly it refuses to do so.

"**Did you hear all of that Lambda? You're going to die if you keep whatever you're doing up!**" Ragna said, hoping that Lambda would listen to reason. "**Lambda understands... but if it is to protect Ragna, Lambda is willing to give up her life to protect Ragna.**" Lambda said as Ragna shook his head at that. "**There's no point in sacrificing yourself like that! I don't want anybody dying for my sake dammit!**" Ragna yelled as he felt the seithr holding Meifang back start to loosen as he immediately clenched his fist to keep her trapped.

"**But Lambda can see Ragna is in pain... Lambda wants to help Ragna feel better.**" Lambda said as Ragna gritted his teeth, painfully trying to keep Meifang contained. "**I don't like seeing you in pain...**" Lambda said, the shifts in her personality both jarring to Ragna's eyes and also his emotions as he struggled to not look at her... to not look at Lambda and be reminded of his sister, of his failure to protect her as Lambda could see the pain in his face.

"**What can I do to help you feel better Ragna?**" Lambda questioned as Ragna did not know the answer himself. What could he do to feel better. In the past few days, he has met 3 people who has the same appearance of his sister, a vigilante who looked to be on his last legs, a squirrel beastkin who lost her arm and the white haired man who seemed to be looking for answers of his own. All of this in the span of the last few days had proved to be very taxing to his mind as he looked at Lambda straight in the eyes, placing his hands on her shoulders.

* * *

Ragna: **I want you to live dammit!**

Lambda:** Ragna?**

Ragna: **I don't want anybody sacrificing themselves just to save me! Nobody wants to see someone die in front of their eyes just to protect them dammit!**

Lambda: **But.**

Ragna: **Do you want to see me die in front of you then? Sacrifice my own life just to protect yours!**

Lambda: **I...I...No**

Ragna: **Exactly! Then just do what Kokonoe tells you and stop the link right now before you kill yourself! If you won't do it for her then do it for me!**

* * *

Lambda paused hearing those words. If not for the person who brought her back...her creator. But for a person she barely knew other than the database established by Professor Kokonoe to help her acclimate to the world and help her know what was going on. She shouldn't feel such a connection towards Ragna the Bloodedge, her mental capacity was saying that it was irrational to feel the way she currently did, that it was a hindrance to her most important mission, to survive.

Yet at the same time, there was something irrational inside her. Something that told her she needed to save Ragna. That she needed to protect him with everything she had. This person she barely knew, this person who she only knows by the little time she had experienced with him the previous day when he saved her from the mysterious black mass of Seithr. She knew she was too weak to keep the Idea Engine linked with the Azure Grimoire...but then an idea struck her.

"**Lambda understands... but Lambda refuses to stop protecting you Ragna.**" Lambda said as before Ragna could speak another word, she boldly grabbed the Azure Grimoire itself, allowing the seithr to flow right at her, shocking Ragna. "**So Lambda will protect you... With everything Lambda has.**" Lambda said. In that moment, the girl had a simple wish in her heart. Through the sea of data and logic swimming through her mind. All she wanted to do was simple. Give Ragna, the person who she has this strange link with, the power needed to keep on fighting without her.

As she did this, Kokonoe could notice her screen pick up a new set of data. Data that she had never seen before. "**What is Lambda...!?**" before Kokonoe could realize what was happening, the Idea Engine that was implanted in Lambda-11 to act as a spare engine in place of what normally ran an Murakumo unit began to move itself right into Ragna The Bloodedge, becoming one with the Azure Grimoire itself.

Before Ragna could say a word, Lambda's hands soon released itself from the Grimoire, the heavy sensation he had felt suddenly swim over him earlier suddenly disappearing as he looked at Lambda in shock. "Lambda...Did it." Lambda weakly said as Ragna became confused looking at her, wondering what she had said. "**Lambda...will now...protect you...Always...**" Lambda continued as her eyes slowly weakened, slowly closing as Ragna could only look at her in confusion as the words that he wanted to say simply refused to come out of his voice.

It was in that moment of sudden distress, sudden stress that caused the grip that had held Meifang tight to loosen as Meifang dropped to the ground, coughing heavily as she struggled to keep a composed face. Ragna was not focusing on that as he was simply left confused by the words Lambda had just left him. Protect him? What did she do and why did she look so weak? "**What...What did you do!?**" Ragna demanded as Lambda softly smiled.

"**Lambda...gave you a piece of her... this way...Lambda...will always protect you...**" the moment Ragna heard those words, he wanted to question her further to figure out what she meant by that. Before he could get his answer though he turned around and noticed Meifang approaching him. "**Just why are you so damn Stubborn!**" Ragna yelled, clenching the Azure Grimoire as he gripped the Aramasa.

"**Stubborn? I guess you can put it that way. I just wish to experience fighting against an opponent who can give me a proper challenge.**" Meifang said as she clenched her fist. "**A person who can show me what true power looks like.**" Meifang continued as she slowly assumed a fighting posture, ready to fight once more despite the injuries she had sustained. Ragna himself was willing to oblige but he needed to focus on Lambda while figure out what she had just done to him.

"**Well if that is what you want. Maybe I can oblige your request Miss.**" A voice said as without warning, the NOL troops standing by to assist Miss LapisLazuli were suddenly blown away as Ragna could immediately recognize the voice that had just spoken. Meifang herself immediately pivoted to meet with the sudden presence, throwing her fist towards the direction she had suspected the new person was coming in to attack her from only to realize her attack had completely missed as a foot stepped on her head with enough force to send her stumbling towards her knocked out companions.

"**So this is where you have been huh kid? I was wondering why it was taking you so long to get to the headquarters.**" The voice said as right in front of Ragna was a sight he immediately recognized. He had to look down because the person talking to him was not a normal human being or beastkin but his master, Jubei. A walking, talking cat person. His small stature would have him be mistaken for a small cat beastkin child with his yellow hood with large paw covers and twin tails if you looked at him from behind but then again, what child would be packing heat in the form of two swords connected by a singular red sheath and an eyepatch over his right eye.

"**M-master?! What are you even doing here?!**" Ragna asked in shock as Jubei simply sighed. "**I'm here to look for my disciple wondering where he went. It was a good thing I came here after following the advice of the person who went ahead of you.**" Jubei explained as Ragna was surprised to hear that Sora had told his master about his current situation... well he wouldn't know that he was saved by a Murakumo unit of all things but the fact that he at least brought help over here despite most likely not knowing about his master-disciple relationship to one of the six heroes at least told him he was at least correct to team up with Sora in a way.

"**Why don't you get going already. And you can leave the little miss behind you in my care. I promise she gets the attention she deserves.**" Jubei said as Ragna looked at Lambda before sighing, realizing that this was his best chance to go now. "**Listen to me Lambda, I have got to go now. You stay close to master now and do what he says. I promise when I have done what I need to do that I will at least see you to get an explanation for what you did.**" Ragna said, feeling bad he had to leave in the way he was but also knew that it was necessary at this point as he stood up and quickly ran towards the NOL base

"**...****O...kay...**" Lambda weakly said as Ragna decided to not say any further, allowing her to rest as he simply gave his master a look that he immediately understood before leaving the scene, taking the alleyways to hurry towards the NOL Base before he would have to keep fighting Meifang once more. "**Right... Sorry about interrupting the way I did miss, I am just making sure my disciple gets his stuff done**." Jubei replied as Meifang scratched her head, unable to stop a chuckle from escaping her voice.

"**Oh why should I? Someone may have interrupted me from fully experiencing the power of the Azure Grimoire but at least that person who stopped me is a Six hero.**" Meifang said, entering a martial stance and staring right at Jubei. "**So come on! Jubei of the Six Heroes! Show me how strong you have remained after all these years!**" Meifang shouted, excited that she would get the chance to duel against one of the famed Six Heroes of the Dark war where others would be terrified at just the mere reputation Jubei had as he couldn't help but sigh.

* * *

"**Sigh... What a piece of work.**" Jubei said as he assumed a stance, deciding to fulfill his student's request this once.

* * *

As Ragna made his way towards the NOL headquarters, he couldn't help but wonder how much time had passed and had been wasted because of his fight against Meifang. Will he make it in time to confront Terumi and fight him once and for all. "**God I hope that kid doesn't meet him... would be a really shitty situation if he..**" Before Ragna could finish his train of thought, a loud boom could be heard in the air as he looked towards the NOL Building.

The sight that he saw was something to behold. Above the NOL building were two different lights in the sky. One light was that of a great blue that split the skies right down the middle. The other light was that of a great red light that resembled the flames of hell itself. These two opposing lights clashed with each other that created a perfect split down the middle as Ragna could feel an intense heat strike him where he stood. There was simply one thing that ran in his mind as he saw this unbelievable sight.

* * *

**...Just what the hell was he witnessing and what the hell was Sora doing over there...**

* * *

**GREETINGS LOST SHEEP OF FANFICTION!? HOW IS EVERYONE DOING ON THIS FINE DAY!? Well that is what I would like to say but with how crazy the world has become lately I highly doubt that would be the right word to use right now. In any case. I do hope you guys are doing well out there. Me? I am doing fine, just trying to survive. If you are wondering why this chapter is longer than normal... Well can I just say that I was having a bit of a writer's high and the word count bloomed as a result. Oh well, can't really stop the writing bug if you got it.**

**SO WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT FOR RAGNA THE BLOODEDGE!? WHAT OTHER WAYS WILL THE TIMELINE START TO CHANGE NOW!? WILL HISTORY REALLY REPEAT ITSELF OR ARE THERE MORE CHANGES IN STORE FOR THE WORLD AND IT'S INHABITANTS?! AND FINALLY WHAT ABOUT SORA AND HIS ROLE IN THE WORLD!? All these questions and more will be answered in the next Canon.**


End file.
